ALEXANDER ROSSI TO PILOT NO. 98 NAPA AUTO PARTS HONDA FOR 102nd RUNNING OF THE INDY 500 BY ANDRETTI AUTOSPORT MAY 27, 2018 INDIANAPOLIS (Sunday, May 27) – Iconic auto parts retailer NAPA AUTO PARTS, supplier to Napa Auto Parts in Petaluma and Santa Rosa, CA in conjunction with NAPA’s major supplier NAPA Balkamp and their supporting vendor partners, has joined with three-time Indy 500 champion Andretti Autosport to sponsor the No. 98 Indy car driven by Alexander Rossi in the 102nd Running of the Indianapolis 500. Rossi’s No. 98 machine is fielded via collaboration between the Michael Andretti-led organization and Bryan Herta Autosport. Tip Tollison, President of NAPA Balkamp in Indianapolis, stated, “Andretti Autosport symbolizes the excellence NAPA AUTO PARTS has maintained for nearly 100 years. With this being the 102nd Running of the Indianapolis 500, I cannot think of anything that makes the historic event more complete than the joining of a premier racing family and a premier auto parts company.” “We’re excited to be in a relationship with another storied American brand for this landmark event,” said Andretti Autosport CEO Michael Andretti. “This will be NAPA’s third time serving as a full primary sponsor in the Verizon IndyCar Series, and I’m honored to have Andretti Autosport chosen to represent their brand.” INDY 500 WINNER ALEXANDER ROSSI HOPES FOR A ‘HELL OF A STORY’ SUNDAY Will start 32nd in the 33-car field MAY 26, 2018 In the early stages of Sunday’s 102nd Indianapolis 500, keep an eye on the back of the field instead of the front. That’s where Alexander Rossi hopes to make his early charge from the middle of row 11 through traffic and toward the front. Rossi, the winner of the 100th Indianapolis 500 in 2016, was a contender to start on the inside of the row 4 during last Sunday’s final round of qualifications. But a cut tire began to rapidly lose air and it was all the young driver from Northern California could do to keep the Honda under control. He starts the No. 27 Honda 32nd in the 33-car field. Rossi isn’t in the back row because he was a slow driver all month; he’s back there because of a flat tire on his final qualification attempt. “We didn’t qualify there on pace, so that’s a good thing,” Rossi told Autoweek. “We had an issue that caused us to be back there. We were fighting for the ‘Fast Nine’ on Saturday, hoping to be in row two. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen. We went into the month with high expectations and now we are viewing this as an opportunity to show what we are capable of. “It’s not easy, but it’s not much more difficult, honestly, than starting from 11th. As soon as you are more than two or three cars farther back, it’s hard to follow. I think it’s going to be hard for everyone.” When Rossi won the Indy 500 in 2016, he was the last car on the lead lap after a pit stop problem and another pit stop to top off the fuel dropped him to 28th with 95 laps left in the race. “If you look back at the last couple of Indy 500s, JPM (Juan Pablo Montoya) had his problems that put him last at the start of the race,” Rossi said. “I had my problem. Ryan Hunter-Reay was back in the field when he won in 2014. It’s definitely possible to still win it in this race." Rossi won the Indy 500 in 2016. “If we were in Road America or Phoenix, I wouldn’t be as optimistic as I am. If you are starting 32nd because you are slow, you are going to have a problem. But if you are starting 32nd because you have an issue and don’t feel you should be there, then you have a pretty big opportunity with a lot of different pit stops and strategies. “There are a lot of different ways you can play it if you have a fast car. And I believe we have a fast car.” Rossi said the row 11 starting position doesn’t change his mindset, or his approach. He is a cold, calculating driver and has a great team at Andretti Autosport when it comes to strategy. The key will be getting through traffic. “It will be difficult, but this car rewards getting into the mechanical window,” Rossi said. “We saw that at Phoenix and showed that you can make it happen if you make the right decision. We are going to go into the race with the confidence we can have the car in the right mechanical window to make that happen. “There will be cars that find that sweet spot with a setup. The window of this car is so small, and everyone is close to being in it, but they aren’t quite there. They have these things they are fighting, but there will be one or two cars that find it and get it in that window and will be able to pass. Before, the window was much wider, and everyone could pass. “This car really does reward finding that window. That doesn’t mean we will find that window, but the opportunity is there.” Rossi said the new aerodynamic package makes the car feel very light going into the turns. It’s almost like tap-dancing on a razor blade and finding the “less scary” of the setup options. “You have to be comfortable in having the car move around,” Rossi said. “You have to find that line between being overaggressive and being brave between not being brave enough and being slow.” Rossi believes that in 2016 he probably shouldn’t have won, but that in 2017 he had the best car in the race but finished seventh because of another pit stop error midway through the race. This year, he is hoping to avoid any mistakes on pit lane and that should allow him to race hard through the field. But it won’t be easy. Sunday’s weather forecast calls for highs in the mid- to upper 90s. The record for the hottest Indy 500 in history is 92 degrees in 1937. The second hottest was in 2012, when the temperature peaked at 91 degrees. He came to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway as a front row favorite. Instead he had to attend Thursday’s “Last Row Party.” “That is what makes the Indy 500 what it is,” Rossi said. “It’s the greatest spectacle in racing and it’s easy to say that when you win and start on the front row but it’s a very different understanding of that phrase when you start in the back. “This race doesn’t owe anybody anything. You don’t deserve to be in it by any stretch of the imagination. “One day you go from fighting for the ‘Fast Nine’ to have a shot at the pole to the next day to literally being next to last ... (it) shows you that every day you have to respect it and appreciate the opportunity that you have. “That is what makes it so special. You have to appreciate every day you have here because there is no guarantee. “It will be one hell of a story if we can pull it off.”
Rossi, the winner of the 100th Indianapolis 500 in 2016, was a contender to start on the inside of the row 4 during last Sunday’s final round of qualifications. But a cut tire began to rapidly lose air and it was all the young driver from Northern California could do to keep the Honda under control. He starts the No. 27 Honda 32nd in the 33-car field. Rossi isn’t in the back row because he was a slow driver all month; he’s back there because of a flat tire on his final qualification attempt. “We didn’t qualify there on pace, so that’s a good thing,” Rossi told Autoweek. “We had an issue that caused us to be back there. We were fighting for the ‘Fast Nine’ on Saturday, hoping to be in row two. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen. We went into the month with high expectations and now we are viewing this as an opportunity to show what we are capable of. “It’s not easy, but it’s not much more difficult, honestly, than starting from 11th. As soon as you are more than two or three cars farther back, it’s hard to follow. I think it’s going to be hard for everyone.” When Rossi won the Indy 500 in 2016, he was the last car on the lead lap after a pit stop problem and another pit stop to top off the fuel dropped him to 28th with 95 laps left in the race. “If you look back at the last couple of Indy 500s, JPM (Juan Pablo Montoya) had his problems that put him last at the start of the race,” Rossi said. “I had my problem. Ryan Hunter-Reay was back in the field when he won in 2014. It’s definitely possible to still win it in this race." Rossi won the Indy 500 in 2016. “If we were in Road America or Phoenix, I wouldn’t be as optimistic as I am. If you are starting 32nd because you are slow, you are going to have a problem. But if you are starting 32nd because you have an issue and don’t feel you should be there, then you have a pretty big opportunity with a lot of different pit stops and strategies. “There are a lot of different ways you can play it if you have a fast car. And I believe we have a fast car.” Rossi said the row 11 starting position doesn’t change his mindset, or his approach. He is a cold, calculating driver and has a great team at Andretti Autosport when it comes to strategy. The key will be getting through traffic. “It will be difficult, but this car rewards getting into the mechanical window,” Rossi said. “We saw that at Phoenix and showed that you can make it happen if you make the right decision. We are going to go into the race with the confidence we can have the car in the right mechanical window to make that happen. “There will be cars that find that sweet spot with a setup. The window of this car is so small, and everyone is close to being in it, but they aren’t quite there. They have these things they are fighting, but there will be one or two cars that find it and get it in that window and will be able to pass. Before, the window was much wider, and everyone could pass. “This car really does reward finding that window. That doesn’t mean we will find that window, but the opportunity is there.” Rossi said the new aerodynamic package makes the car feel very light going into the turns. It’s almost like tap-dancing on a razor blade and finding the “less scary” of the setup options. “You have to be comfortable in having the car move around,” Rossi said. “You have to find that line between being overaggressive and being brave between not being brave enough and being slow.” Rossi believes that in 2016 he probably shouldn’t have won, but that in 2017 he had the best car in the race but finished seventh because of another pit stop error midway through the race. This year, he is hoping to avoid any mistakes on pit lane and that should allow him to race hard through the field. But it won’t be easy. Sunday’s weather forecast calls for highs in the mid- to upper 90s. The record for the hottest Indy 500 in history is 92 degrees in 1937. The second hottest was in 2012, when the temperature peaked at 91 degrees. He came to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway as a front row favorite. Instead he had to attend Thursday’s “Last Row Party.” “That is what makes the Indy 500 what it is,” Rossi said. “It’s the greatest spectacle in racing and it’s easy to say that when you win and start on the front row but it’s a very different understanding of that phrase when you start in the back. “This race doesn’t owe anybody anything. You don’t deserve to be in it by any stretch of the imagination. “One day you go from fighting for the ‘Fast Nine’ to have a shot at the pole to the next day to literally being next to last ... (it) shows you that every day you have to respect it and appreciate the opportunity that you have. “That is what makes it so special. You have to appreciate every day you have here because there is no guarantee. “It will be one hell of a story if we can pull it off.”