IndyCar Series drivers arrived in St. Petersburg April 2 in anticipation of the opening practice session on April 3. This is the first time that the Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg will be the season-opening race. Below are select comments from drivers about the weekend:
Marco Andretti (No. 26 Andretti Green): “I can’t think of a much better place to start the season. You have the setting, hopefully you have the weather. The track is quite enjoyable for the drivers. Obviously what makes the event is the city’s support and the fans.” (About AGR’s chances to win) “I think it’s going to be super tough. I think the top 10 is going to be stacked, super-competitive, super-close. Having said that, we’ve really been working on our road course cars in the offseason and I’ve been working on my road course game as well, just staying fresh. I think we’ll be right in the middle of it. Hopefully we hit the ground running with a decent baseline and just tune it in and make the right changes.”
Tony Kanaan (No. 11 Team 7-Eleven): “It’s a great event. I’ve finished on the podium every time I’ve been here, so for me it’s been a good place to be. It’s great to open the season here. The atmosphere that the city brings, it’s such a beautiful place. There couldn’t be a better place to start.”
Graham Rahal (No. 02 McDonald’s Racing Team): (About coming back to the site of his first win) “I’m still not sure that’s it’s actually hit me. Maybe the first time I get introduced as the defending champ it might hit. Truthfully, my focus is just to do it again. More than anything that’s what I want to happen and that’s what I’ve set my sights on. I’m biased toward St. Pete. I enjoy being here. I think it’s a great race, so I’m looking forward to getting the season started here.” (About having more confidence with a win under his belt) “We thought we could win last year, but certainly we were surprised. We hadn’t really ever turned a lap in a road course in these cars, and so for us to come in and make it happen certainly wasn’t expected, but we knew if there was a shot for us to win an IndyCar Series race early on it was going to be here. This was our best shot, so fortunately we made it happen. This year, our cars are pretty good on the road course, in testing they’ve been pretty strong. I’ve been pretty happy with them, pretty comfortable, so from that standpoint I think we all should be more confident coming into this season. Obviously not overconfident because there’s still a lot of work to do. I think the Penske boys are very good, and so it’s definitely going to be a tough weekend, but we should have a shot.”
E.J. Viso (No. 13 PDVSA HVM Racing): (About returning to St. Petersburg, the first track he’ll race at a second time) “I think it’s great. Last year we started the championship with no references, no data, no knowledge, nothing. So coming back to a track that I’ve been to before is a big relief. I know what to expect, where to push. I know where we were strong last year, where our weaknesses were. We know where we need to start working as soon as we hit the track. We’re a lot better prepared, and we’re in a better position.”
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