By Aaron Bearden
INDIANAPOLIS — A few stories from Indianapolis 500 Media Day from Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Representing Grassroots Stars
Pippa Mann has never fancied herself to be a dirt track competitor.
But on Sunday she’ll represent the dirt community in front of more than 250,000 people at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
When the traditional gunshot rang out to end last Saturday’s initial qualifying session for the 103rd Running of the Indianapolis 500, Mann found herself overcome with emotion for the second-straight year. But where last year’s tears came from a biting sadness after missing out on the race, this year’s qualifying evoked tears of joy and relief, as the Briton celebrated a 30th-place qualifying effort for the Greatest Spectacle in Racing.
“The emotion came from what did happen to us last year,” Mann said during Thursday’s Indianapolis 500 Media Day. “We worked really hard to try to get that car fast enough. We didn’t have time to solve the problems and she just didn’t go.
“This time our car has been good enough. it’s been good enough every day, and it’s been fast enough every day. We were fast enough in qualifying when the track was hot and the wind was blowing.”
“It was more that I just didn’t want to go through it again. It was too important, and we’d been too good to put ourselves in that position. That was where the emotion came from.”
Mann’s 2019 qualification was a story of redemption after her 2018 setback, but it also served as an important moment for the dirt community. For the first time since the late Bryan Clauson’s last Month of May in 2016, the discipline will have strong representation in the Greatest Spectacle in Racing.
United States Auto Club (USAC) stalwarts Clauson-Marshall Racing paired with Ross Motorsports to field Mann’s No. 39, with the Indiana Donor Network’s Driven2SaveLives program as the primary sponsor. CMR was formed in 2016 in memory of Bryan Clauson after his passing following a crash in the Belleville Midget Nationals. The organization has thrived on dirt, but co-owner Tim Clauson believed merging an Indy 500 effort with the team’s dirt program to be “very important” to its future.
The team picked Mann as their driver after her graceful showing in 2018, and she made good on their decision with an impressive qualifying effort while other teams like Schmidt Peterson Motorsports and McLaren struggled.
“I want to start out by thanking all of the USAC fans who have decided that they can support me because Tim and Richard (Marshall, co-owner) chose me to drive their car,” Mann said. “I am fully aware that I am a pavement racing girl. I’m fully aware that is my background, and not dirt racing.”
“I hope that over the course of the week, some of them who weren’t sure of me at first have maybe converted a little bit. I hope they know that I respect everyone that comes from that discipline so much, and I’m honored that Richard and Tim chose me to drive this car and represent Bryan (Clauson) out there.”
CMR won’t be the only dirt competitors at the Brickyard. Friday’s Freedom 100 will see dirt drivers present in Chris Windom and Jarett Andretti. But by making the race they give a grassroots connection for local competitors to the Indy 500 that harkens back to the days of old.
Ericsson Enjoying Early Indy Runs
Marcus Ericsson’s first Indianapolis 500 qualifying session was a quiet one, but it proved stressful.
Not over his own performance — he qualified a respectable 13th — but as a teammate to fellow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports competitor James Hinchcliffe.
“It was very stressful,” Ericsson said on Thursday, discussing Hinchcliffe’s Last Row Shootout qualifying effort. “As a team we want to do well. We want to put all four cars that we have this weekend as high up as possible, so when we saw that happening and (James) having the potential to not participate for the second year in a row, it was nerve-wracking for all of us.
“But the team went and killed it out there, did an awesome job on Bump Day. That was very important to us as a team.”
Outside of Hinchcliffe’s scare, Ericsson and the No. 7 team have enjoyed a quiet Month of May in Indianapolis. While others have had to endure crashes, mechanical gremlins or qualifying scares, Ericsson is one day of practice away from entering his first Indy 500 without any issues on the oval.
That’s allowed the rookie to soak in his first Indy 500 experience, and the former Formula 1 competitor has found it to be enjoyable thus far.
“It’s been a lot of fun,” Ericsson said. “You can see how much it means to people here – this month and this race. It’s been special to be a part of all the things going on, all the tradition. I’m happy about that. ”
Ericsson arrived at Indy after a difficult introduction to the IndyCar Series, and began the month with a crash and 24th-place finish in the INDYCAR Grand Prix. The Swede’s 17.2 average finish through five starts dropped him to 20th in the standings before he took to the IMS oval, a difficult position that’s led him to appreciate the competition IndyCar provides.
Asked about things that have stood out to him in IndyCar thus far, Ericsson immediately mentioned the competition.
“It’s super high competition,” Ericsson said. “The field is usually covered by not more than a second. There are so many good drivers and teams out there. That’s been the biggest thing to me, I think.
“Also, the way that you as a driver need to adapt to all types of racing. There are street courses, road courses, super speedways, short ovals, all types of things. You need to be able to master them all, and I think that’s the unique and cool thing about IndyCar.”
Ericsson hopes to do just that as the year goes on. A championship is out of reach at this point, but Ericsson feels a rise up the standings and spot atop the podium are within reach.
“I want to win a race this year,” he said. “I think we have the pace, and ability to do that. That’s one of the biggest goals this year, to win a race. I still think it’s possible to be top-10 in the championship. Those are the big goals moving forward.”
Daly’s Great Opportunity
Last year Conor Daly was just happy to be in the Indy 500. He’d just scraped into the field in the closing moments, delivering Thom Burns Racing a maiden Indianapolis start with a brave late qualifying run.
But that was last year. Now Daly’s back with the best team he’s ever driven for, and there’s only one goal at race’s end.
“I’ve gotta win,” Daly said on Thursday. “There’s no other way to think. That’s the only way it works.”
Daly rose into contention earlier in the spring, when he was confirmed for a Month of May run with Andretti Autosport. He arrived at the Brickyard with more confidence than in any prior year, and qualified a comfortable 11th as others struggled to make the race.
With three days remaining in the Month of May, Daly’s sixth Indianapolis 500 outing has proven largely stress-free. The resources Andretti Autosport provide have made for as peaceful an existence as possible in the IndyCar paddock.
“It’s been awesome,” Daly said. “The professionalism, the high level of resources that we’ve been able to use… it’s like nothing I’ve ever been a part of. I’ve just had a smile on my face the whole time.”
He still came back to the Brickyard on Sunday, but his lone cameo came in the form of a jog with Marco Andretti. Instead of sweating out bumping, Daly watched on with the rest of the paddock as McLaren and Carlin saw numerous opportunities dashed.
“I got to really enjoy it,” Daly said. “I thought the qualifying weekend was so exciting. I loved that. I was so glad I was not a part of it, but I really did enjoy the fact that it was quite exciting.
“I thought (the format) was great. I really did think it worked out well. I’m glad they did it, and I’m curious to see what we do next year.”
