Firestone 600
• Race 9 of 2015 Verizon IndyCar Series season (June 5-6). It is the 27th race on the 1.455-mile Texas Motor Speedway oval dating to the track’s opening in 1997.
• Entry list: 23 cars entered
• Tickets and event information: CLICK HERE
• For spectators: A full-field autograph session is scheduled from 5:15-6 p.m. (local) at the INDYCAR Fan Village outside Gate 6. … A pre-race concert free for ticket-holders features Reckless Kelly and a post-race concert in the field highlights Bleu Edmonson. ... Charles Haley, a 2015 Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee who won a record five Super Bowl titles with the Dallas Cowboys and San Francisco 49ers, will serve as the honorary starter. … Three-time Indianapolis 500 winner and Fort Worth resident Johnny Rutherford and 2014 Firestone 600 race winner Ed Carpenter will participate in a Q&A with fans holding Raceday U tickets. Get yours today HERE.
• Twitter: @TXMotorSpeedway, #Firestone600; @IndyCar, #IndyCar
• TV: NBCSN telecasts qualifying (6 p.m. ET June 5) and the race live (8 p.m. ET June 6). Brian Till is the lead announcer alongside analysts Townsend Bell and Paul Tracy. Pit reporters are Marty Snider, Kevin Lee, Kelli Stavast and Robin Miller.
• Web: Live streaming video of Verizon IndyCar Series practice and qualifications in conjunction with real-time Timing & Scoring and the Advance Auto Parts INDYCAR Radio Network broadcasts is available on RaceControl.IndyCar.com. … For the race, Timing & Scoring and the radio network broadcast.
• Radio: All Verizon IndyCar Series races are broadcast live on the Advance Auto Parts INDYCAR Radio Network, Sirius 212, XM 209, RaceControl.IndyCar.com, indycarradio.com and on the INDYCAR 15 app. Verizon IndyCar Series qualifying is broadcast on Sirius 212, XM 209, IndyCar.com, indycarradio.com, and the INDYCAR 15 app. Verizon IndyCar Series practice sessions are on RaceControl.IndyCar.com, indycarradio.com and the INDYCAR 15 app. Paul Page is the chief announcer alongside analyst Davey Hamilton.
• INDYCAR 15 app: Verizon Wireless puts fans in the driver's seat with its INDYCAR 15 app, which has been enhanced with features such as an interactive 3D live view with real-time leaderboard and car telemetry to see where a fan's favorite driver is positioned, in-car camera video streaming from cameras that move 360 degrees and driver to pit crew conversation. Download it today.
Race laps: 248 (360.840 miles) in counterclockwise direction
Pit box dimensions: 39 x 14 feet
Race weekend fuel: 40 U.S. gallons of Sunoco E85 for practice/qualifications; 95 for race
Tires: 11 sets of Firestone Firehawks for the weekend
Verizon IndyCar Series on-track times (all times Eastern):
Friday, June 5
Noon-1:15 p.m. -- Practice 1
4:15 p.m. – Single-car qualifications (two-lap average speed sets starting grid)
7:45-8:15 p.m. – Practice 2
Saturday, June 6
4:45 p.m. – Systems check
8:50 p.m. – Green flag
Takuma Sato's keys to race: "Texas used to be all about how we minimize the friction, but since we have a huge reduction in downforce to avoid pack racing, now the focus is to have very good mechanical grip. It’s not enough downforce to go flat for whole the stint anymore -- even with the maximum wing angles allowed by the regulations, so we focus on strong stability in the traffic."
Points: Driver, entrant and engine manufacturer receive points corresponding to their finish in the race (manufacturer points are awarded to the top three Chevrolet and Honda finishers). Bonus points for driver/entrant also are awarded for Verizon P1 Award (1 point), leading the most laps (2 points) and leading a lap (1 point). Engine manufacturer bonus points are awarded for Verizon P1 Award (1 point) and leading the most laps (2 points).
2014 race: Carpenter started fifth (his best in 13 starts at Texas) and took the lead from Team Penske’s Will Power on Lap 182 of the 248-lap event. He began to pull away from the field before a caution on Lap 241 packed up the field. On the Lap 246 restart, Carpenter was able to maintain the lead and won by 0.5247 of a second over Power, the pole sitter.
Of note: This is the second of six oval races on the schedule. Juan Pablo Montoya won the first, the Indianapolis 500, on May 24. He takes a 21-point lead over Power in the championship into the Firestone 600. ... Helio Castroneves, who has won an Indy car-record four times at Texas Motor Speedway, is among the six winners entered in this year's race. Others are Tony Kanaan (2004 Race 1), Scott Dixon (2008), Ryan Briscoe (2010), Power (2011 Race 2) and Carpenter (2014). ... Power has earned the Verizon P1 Award for the pole position the past two years at the track. ... Six drivers have won from the pole: Sam Hornish Jr. (2001 Race 2), de Ferran (2003 Race 2), Castroneves (2004 Race 2), Tomas Scheckter (2005), Dixon (2008) and Briscoe (2010). ... Gabby Chaves, Stefano Coletti and Sage Karam will make their first start at Texas Motor Speedway. ... The No. 3 Hitachi Team Penske crew of Helio Castoneves won the Firestone Pit Stop Performance Award during Race 1 of the Chevrolet Dual in Detroit with a total pit lane time of 52.462 seconds. During Race 2 of the Chevrolet Dual in Detroit, the No. 28 DHL Andretti Autosport crew of Ryan Hunter-Reay claimed the Firestone Pit Stop Performance Award with a total pit lane time of 55.464 seconds. The crews will receive their respective $5,000 awards during pre-race ceremonies June 6.