Indy 500 driver Josef Newgarden says F1 champ Alonso will bring "heightened skill" to the famous oval

Record ID: 875779

  • Title: Indy 500 driver Josef Newgarden says F1 champ Alonso will bring "heightened skill" to the famous oval
  • Date: 24th May 2017
  • Summary: WASHINGTON, D.C., UNITED STATES (MAY 23, 2017) (REUTERS) (SOUNDBITE) (English) INDY DRIVER JOSEF NEWGARDEN SAYING "You know with Fernando I think he's had a fantastic transition. It's pretty surprising how quickly he adapted now you can never tell. You can be the most talented driver on the planet and Fernando is one of the best drivers in the world but you never know how they are going to adapt to an oval race and specifically the Indy 500. It's such a challenge understanding the qualifying car and the race car that, you know, you're not sure how people are going to adapt. For him he really took to it well. He really understands how the draft works, the aerodynamics works on the cars, figuring out race traffic and how he's going to cut through the pack or how you manage that throughout the race so I think he's going to do very, very well but, you know, is he going to win the race. It's going to be difficult. There are a lot of guys who are very good and who have dome this race a number of times now. For him to beat some of the veterans of the Indy 500, its going to be difficult but he certainly has an opportunity. That's why he is one of the best in the world."
  • Embargoed: 7th June 2017 22:55
  • Keywords: Penske Formula 1 Indy 500
  • Location: WASHINGTON, DC AND INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA, UNITED STATES
  • City: WASHINGTON, DC AND INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA, UNITED STATES
  • Country: USA
  • Topics: Motor Racing,Sport
  • Reuters ID: LVA0086I79N3Z
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: Indy driver Josef Newgarden is looking to improve on his third place finish at last year's Indy 500 when the marquee race gets underway this Sunday (May 28).
    A crash on the fourth day of training last week was a slight set back for the 26-year-old from Nashville,Tennessee. Despite slamming into the wall on the first turn, he was able to walk away from the incident unhurt.
    Newgarden will join a vast legion of motor sport fans who will be watching to see how F1 champion Fernando Alsono fares at the famous oval. Alonso is passing up the Grand Prix race in Monaco to make his Indy 500 debut.
    Newgarden has been fascinated by Alonso's quick adaptation to the course and says his training and qualifying performances have impressed his fellow drivers. Newgarden, who drives for Team Penske, will go to the Indy start with five drivers from that team including Juan Pablo Montoya and Helio Castroneves.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2017. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
  • Usage Terms/Restrictions: None
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