Four Questions With KV Racing Technology-Lotus Driver, E.J. Viso

KV Racing Technology-Lotus #59 Dallara driven by ChampCar alumni EJ Viso as he takes turn #9 during qualifications at the 37th Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2011)


Four Questions With KV Racing Technology-Lotus Driver, E.J. Viso
E.J. Viso Interview, July 21, 2011

Ernesto José Viso Lossada (born March 19, 1985) is a Venezuelan race car driver. He is commonly referred to as Ernesto Viso or, since his move to American racing, E.J. Viso.

Viso was born in Caracas, Venezuela. He has raced in the 2005 and 2006 GP2 Series seasons, and has also driven the third car for Spyker MF1 Racing. In 2007 he competed in the GP2 Series for Racing Engineering. Starting in 2008, he raced in the United States for HVM Racing which had just merged into the IndyCar Series (ICS) from the ChampCar World Series (CCWS). He raced through the next year until joining another CCWS merged team of KV Racing Technology-Lotus in 2010.

We catch up with E.J. before the second race of a 2 race swing through Canada, the 11th race in a 18 race season at Edmonton, Alberta Canada.


You are now in your second season with KVRT-Lotus, do you have opportunities to learn by sharing information, technical feedback or experiences with teammates and their engineers?

Yes, it’s always good being part of a team. A lot of what we’re doing now is a continuation of work we started last year with Takuma and the guys, and Tony brings new information. We really don’t change very much, its more like evolving the program and it just keeps growing.



You had some tough luck in Toronto [Race 10 of 18 in 2011] but still finished pretty well. Is that kind of representative of your year so far?

Well, I did have some bad luck with punctures in Toronto. I think really every race this year except maybe Iowa, where we had a major problem with the car, we’ve always been very competitive, running a lot in 5th or 6th, but unfortunately we haven’t finished as many races as we’d like. Sometimes my fault, sometimes the team’s and sometimes other circumstances, but we know we’re good, we know we have the speed , we’re getting better all the time and just need to stay strong and do it.

E.J. as he gets instructions from the team manager in the pits at the Honda Indy Toronto. Image Credit: LAT/Webb via Motor Sports Unplugged (2011)


Nobody is familiar with this new Edmonton track, but with the long straightaways and hairpins many drivers say there are passing opportunities but it could be a demolition derby. What are your thoughts?

That’s probably true. The first corner is way slower than it looks and is very tight in the exit. It’s almost like a dragster, you’ve got to stop and go, so car setup is very important and you need good braking and good traction. I’m sure a lot of people are going to be driving very soft cars to try to accommodate the needs of the track. With 3 very slow corners you’ll need to get power early.

This race, I think, is going to be similar to Toronto. It’s funny, because my mentality there was only to finish. I never, ever, took any kind of risk during the race and kind of let the race come to me and that’s the same mentality to bring to this place. It will be a very physically demanding race here, it’s easy to make mistakes and there are going to be some accidents. Just by keeping calm, having good pit stops and trying to save a little fuel so the last stop is as fast as possible is important.


On the business side of things how has the relationship with a name like Lotus affected your ability to expand your personal brand or create marketing opportunities?

The program we put together, that is, Lotus and KV, is very important. At the end of the day KV is a team, but Lotus is a car company, is bigger and very appealing to sponsors and the media. It’s positive for me, the team, for everybody and I hope it’s the first of many years.

-- END --

FOOTNOTE: E.J. Viso, in "Knockout" qualifying made it into the "Firestone Fast Six" and registered a P5. KV Racing Technology-Lotus teammate, Takuma Sato took his second pole position of the season, and his first road course pole position in the IndyCar Series.

... notes from The EDJE


Follow E.J. Viso Here:

website: www.ejviso.com

twitter: @ejviso

facebook: www.facebook.com/pages/E-J-Viso/54874179953?ref=ts

KV Racing Technology – Lotus

www.kvracingtechnology.com

twitter: @kvracing

Facebook www.facebook.com/kvracingtechnology

(ht: KV Racing Technology–Lotus, Motor Sports Unplugged, Wikipedia )


[Article first published as Four Questions With KV Racing Technology-Lotus Driver, E.J. Viso on Technorati]Source URL: http://allnewfordcar.blogspot.com/search/label/Honda%20Indy%20Toronto
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Honda-Powered Dallaras Heat Up The Streets (and driver tempers) Of The Honda Indy Toronto

Will Power leads the field from P1 at the Honda Indy Toronto. Image Credit: IZOD IndyCar Series

Honda-Powered Dallaras Heat Up The Streets (and driver tempers) Of The Honda Indy Toronto

Round 10 of 18, the Honda Indy Toronto proved to be one of the toughest tests of man, women, and machine of the season. We are beginning the second half of the season and what was shaping up to be a tightly contested two to four driver series championship points race was undone in part due to timing and, of course, full course yellow flag caution periods.

Will Power, entered the race by securing the pole, but still 20 points down to Dario Franchitti, the driver that took the points lead last year in the last race in order to secure his third IndyCar Series Championship. Will Power has done well here in Toronto (reining 2010 race winner) and he was hoping to climb back in the middle of the race for the season points lead on the strength of his Firestone Fast Six Peak Pole Award starting position.

The flag drops to start the race and everything looked good at the beginning because Will's car and his driving skill had the best of the two red Target Chip Ganassi racing Dallaras behind him. At about lap 27, Dario Franchitti heads into the pits a little early to shake things up and get on a different pit sequence and this became the first chink in Power's hold on the lead. Three laps later, Power teammate Helio Castroneves spins out Alex Tagliani in turn 3 bringing out the second full course caution out of eight in the race. This, on restart, places Dario Franchitti at the lead of the race and in attitudinal control from this point forward.

Double-file restarts become the attention draw they were intended to be, with three-wide contests going into turn one and cleaning themselves up by turn two, only to increase the level of contest going into the end of a high-speed straight at turn three where most of the day's full course cautions were launched.

By lap 54, with the help of a slowing Simona de Silvestro, Power was able to gain enough spots to pass by and get ahead of Dario Franchitti where Power felt he could recapture the lead of the race on pit sequence, but Dario had other ideas. When the next time these two drivers came to turn 3, Dario decided to stick his nose in where there wasn't any room and pulled off a NASCAR style punt on Will ... and spun him around. By the time Will Power was able to get turned back around and running, he was back in the fields at P13. The IndyCar Series Championship points gap between Franchitti and Power enlarges to 55 before going on to Round 12 of 18 at Edmonton, July 24th, 2011.

Helmet of the points leading Dario Franchitti as he and his team celebrates the contraversial win at Exposition place in Toronto. Image Credit: IZOD IndyCar Series

This excerpted and edited from Racer -

Power slams Franchitti after clash
RACER - July 11, 2011

Afterward a furious Power said the series officials should have taken action against Franchitti.

"It doesn't surprise me that he didn't get a penalty, because he never gets penalized, it's pretty typical," said Power in an interview with Versus. "It was a pretty dirty move. He just turned me around. Does anyone ever penalize this guy? He's as dirty as you like.

"I left the inside open on the brakes. I'm really disappointed with Dario. I always race him clean, and he always races me dirty. He did the same at St. Pete, though I didn't say anything, and he did the same today. Disappointed in Dario. The guy who mouths off about everyone and whinges about everyone, and he's the guy who races the most dirty, never gets a penalty from IndyCar. It's just not right."
[Reference Here]

There was a lot more that ended up not being right as there was hot action around turn three, the pits, and the rest of the track for that matter.

Alex Tagliani's car goes airborne after colliding with Danica Patrick's car on the streets of Toronto. Patrick was able to return to the race after having the nose of her car replaced with a spare part from teammate Marco Andretti. Image Credit: IZOD IndyCar Series

Danica Patrick, for her part, finished yet another race in rolling condition, extending her IZOD IndyCar Series record to 43, but this was not without incident. She ran well all race after starting P21 of 26 cars, concentrating at going fast and had worked her way up to the top 10 when she entered turn three with the Dale Coyne Racing Dallara of James Jakes turned around in the corner on lap 71. To avoid contact, Danica ended up pushing Alex Tagliani's Sam Schmidt Motorsports Dallara (not his first incident in the race) up on its sidepod along the wall as he, a Canadian crowd favorite, luckily misses injury. This results in damaging Danica's front wing and delivers the eighth and final full course yellow.

Confusion ensues for Danica and her team as they do not have a replacement for her damaged front wing. As it turns out, Andretti Autosport gave the wing away to support the effort of teammate Ryan Hunter-Reay on his way to a podium (P3) finish but did not anticipate another incident. As Danica had wait in her pit, Antretti Autosport found a wing in Marco Andretti's pit (Marco finished in P4) and rushed it over to Patrick's pit and it was installed. One can only wonder, if Andretti Autosport were prepared for the Patrick incident (or just any team incident - bad team management process), where would she have ended the race ... probably a lot better than P19 and the next to the last car running on the track ahead of KV Racing Technologies/Lotus team's Takuma Sato, both ending the race six laps down.

One of many of the picturesque views to be had at one of the premiere temporary street courses in North America - the Honda Indy Toronto. Image Credit: IZOD IndyCar Series

The crowd was big and full of the excitement generated throughout the race by the close wheel-to-wheel, carbon-fiber action. Can any standard oval race course deliver this kind of intensity and competition throughout a race?

Street and road courses look great on TV and the action on small bullring (1 mile or less) courses with close open wheel action has fans on the edge of their seats leaving the regular oval track wanting for something other than "event" trappings to bring people to the track or turning on their TV sets! It is a question fair to ask.

... notes from The EDJE


[Article first published as Honda-Powered Dallaras Heat Up The Streets (and driver tempers) Of The Honda Indy Toronto on Technorati]Source URL: http://allnewfordcar.blogspot.com/search/label/Honda%20Indy%20Toronto
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Honda Indy Toronto - Round 10 of 18, "Tweet"-By-LiveBlog Entry

After winning the pole in Toronto, @12WillPower talks with Versus. #indycarmobile. Image Credit: twitpic - Penske Racing


Honda Indy Toronto - Round 10 of 18, "Tweet"-By-LiveBlog Entry
Will Power's love affair with the Toronto street course continued after he snared pole position for Sunday's Honda Indy Toronto.
The Australian, who has claimed pole positions in the last eight IndyCar road race events, checked-in with a 59.577-second best lap on the 2.82km Exhibition Place street course for his 21st career pole.
But while Power is the defending champion in Toronto, taking top spot on the grid was a new highlight for him.
"Man, we really had to work hard for that," Power said after securing the Firestone Fast Six Peak Pole Award. "I've never won a pole here in Toronto and I love this place. When you turn a fast lap here, you're really just exhausted. This is such a physical track. It's a real driver's track with all the different surfaces and all the bumps, you really need to wring its neck out there and that's what I love about it."
Power goes into today's race trailing rival and two-time defending series champion Dario Franchitti by 20 points on the 2011 IndyCar Series championship standings. New Zealander, Scott Dixon sits between Power and Franchitti in qualifying and will start alongside the Australian in the front-row while Franchitti starts from P3.
"It's great to be on pole here but this is a track where you can really pass a lot of cars and move forward from the back," Power said.


Track Map - Honda Indy Toronto temporary street course. Image Credit: jamesjakes.com


The race started on time with the following entries, initially "Tweets" from Twitter, then direct, live blogging entries during the course of the race. The race transpired as follows:

Meeshbeer Meeshbeer - Green! Green! Green!!
IndyCar IZOD IndyCar Series - We're green! http://racecontrol.indycar.com/
MoreFrontWing More Front Wing - Can't believe lap 1 was clean! Amazing.
Talked too soon!!! Briscoe and Kanaan make contact on LAP 3.
FollowAndretti Andretti Autosport - Full course caution. Kanaan with a bit of contact.
SBPopOffValve PopOffValve.com - I am sure @TonyKanaan is going to unfollow me and never speak to me again after I picked him to win this week.
Meeshbeer Meeshbeer – RESTART - Green! Green! Green!!
MoreFrontWing More Front Wing - Awesome restart!
LAP 8 Danica and Taku get together … come to pits
LAP 27 – Franchitti pits.
LAP 30 – Tagliani and Castroneves get together in turn 3, spins Tags – Full Course Caution
Fieldof33 Paul Dalbey - Stop me if you've heard this before... Helio takes another driver out of the race and screws over his teammate.
SBPopOffValve PopOffValve.com - Helio NERFED Tags. Hmm. Unprecedented HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA.
After pitstops – Franchitti, Servia, Wilson, RHR, Hinchtown, Briscoe, Meira, Tracy, Andretti, Hildebrand, Jakes, then Power, Dixon, Conway, and Rahal.
GREEN, GREEN, GREEN double file RESTART LAP 36!
LAP 38 Tracy and Hinchcliff get together, damaged front wing on Tracy
Jakes has a problem, spins in turn 9 – Full Course Yellow LAP 39
RESTART LAP 43 - Franchitti, Servia, Wilson, RHR, Briscoe, Dixon, Andretti, Meira Conway, Power, Hildebrand.
LAP 44 cars dive into pitlane – Servia has a pick-up problem, gets passed by Wilson and RHR.
Andretti gets past Dixon and Briscoe to P5
LAP 46 sees Conway get around Meira for P7 then Briscoe for P6 followed by Power around Mreira for P7
LAP 47 Tracy clobbers Meira and takes him out of the race Full Course Yellow
LAP 48 everyone gets into the pits for tires and fuel … may be the last stop.
LAP 49 Graham Rahal leads the field due to an earlier pitstop – then Viso, de Silvestro, RHR, Beatriz, Franchitti, Wilson, Dixon, Power and Andretti round out the top 10.
RHR may be in the best position to go to the end without a pitstop for fuel.
RESTART LAP 52 side-by-side with lapped Tagliani gives Rahal all he can handle – passes Rahal to get his lap back.
Ryan Hunter-Reay gets past de Silvestro LAP 53 and now Power gets past several cars and runs in P6 ahead of Franchitti.
LAP 54 Power passes de Silvestro for P5 – Conway heads for the pits with damage.
Full Course Yellow – Will Power gets turned around by Dario Franchitti in turn 4 Power stalled.
Franchitti now in P5 behind Wilson on LAP 58 during the 5^th full course caution.
RESTART LAP 61 side-by-side with Rahal, RHR, Viso, Wilson, Franchitti, Dixon, Servia, Andretti … Power back at P16
Viso locks up his tires and causes a flat when Wilson tries to pass, Dixon now past Wilson.
Graham will need a 44 lap tank full in order to maintain position and win ... or just finish the race.
Top 5 are Rahal, Hunter-Reay, Franchitti, Dixon and Wilson.
Franchitti passes RHR on lap 64
Will Power gets booted into the tire barrier by Tagliani on LAP 66 – possible 45 points down to Franchitti
Yellow helps Rahal on his load of fuel with 18 laps to go.
Top 5 shows Rahal, Franchitti, RHR, Dixon, and Wilson. Will Power out of the car unable to continue and will finish at P 24
LAP 68 Rahal chooses to start from the left on the side-by-side and the restart gets waived off – was this on purpose – for gas?
RESTART LAP 69 – waived off
RESTART LAP 70 – Rahal gets a leap and the GREEN Flag flies – 77 Tagliani goes up on it side as he gets together with James Jakes
Full Course Yellow - can you say destruction derby? Patrick hits Jakes which caused a chain reaction with Tagliani – lost in all of this is that Franchitti gets around Rahal in turn 3 for the lead
LAP 76 RESTART – Top 5 are Franchitti, Rahal, Dixon, RHR, and Wilson.
Three wide into turn 1, Wilson gets turned and collects several cars that include Servia, Hinchcliff and a couple of others. Rahal gets passed by Dixon but it was under Yellow and gets sent back. Andretti causes the chain reaction incident.
LAP 80 RESTART – Top 5 are Franchitti, Rahal, Dixon, RHR, and Andretti.
Rahal almost passes Franchitti through 1 and 2, gets spun by Dixon and Rahal gets booted back to P13.
Dixon charges on to Franchitti and if Dario wins it will be a 55 point lead from 20 before the race over Power going into Edmonton.
LAP 83 of 85 laps it Franchitti, Dixon and newlywed Ryan Hunter-Reay in 1-2-3!
Five car lengths separate Franchitti and Dixon who is closing. Both are pulling away from Ryan Hunter-Reay.
Checkered Flag, Dario Franchitti wins for the fourth time this season and the third time at the Toronto street course venue. 30 career wins gives him 9^th all-time and passes Rick Mears who posted 29 wins in his career. Further, Franchitti is now one win shy of tying Paul Tracy and Sebastien Bourdais for eighth on the all-time wins list with 31.

Graham Rahal would have made it on fuel but he believes that if RHR did not hit him, he would have been on the podium. Maybe we should just call this a honeymoon gift.
Marco Andretti gained 16 positions in the race and moves up one position in the overall championship.
An exciting race to watch and listen to but a horrible race for the ChampCar proud fans of Will Power, Graham Rahal, and Oriol Servia. In the end, Sebastien Bourdais and EJ Viso were the only ChampCar transition drivers to make it into the top ten … and this, technically, is one of their tracks.

Dario Franchitti celebrates with his team in the winners podium at the Honda Indy Toronto - Before turning a lap, Franchitti issued a cautionary note about 26 cars squeezing through the narrow twists and turns of the 1.755-mile, 11-turn Exhibition Place street course in the Honda Indy Toronto. “Small mistakes will be punished, and in some cases, it could take out multiple cars,” the IZOD IndyCar Series championship points leader said. Image Credit: chipganassiracing.com


How they finished:

Pos - Driver - Team - Time/Gap

1. Dario Franchitti Ganassi 85 laps
2. Scott Dixon Ganassi + 0.7345s
3. Ryan Hunter-Reay Andretti + 6.0144s
4. Marco Andretti Andretti + 7.5671s
5. Vitor Meira Foyt + 9.0117s
6. Sebastien Bourdais Dale Coyne + 9.3114s
7. Ryan Briscoe Penske + 9.8735s
8. JR Hildebrand Panther + 14.1750s
9. EJ Viso KV + 14.7843s
10. Simona de Silvestro HVM + 15.7603s
11. Ana Beatriz Dreyer & Reinbold + 16.8992s
12. Oriol Servia Newman/Haas + 19.8736s
13. Graham Rahal Ganassi + 21.3123s
14. James Hinchcliffe Newman/Haas + 1 lap
15. Justin Wilson Dreyer & Reinbold + 2 laps
16. Paul Tracy Dragon + 3 laps
17. Helio Castroneves Penske + 4 laps
18. James Jakes Dale Coyne + 4 laps
19. Danica Patrick Andretti + 6 laps
20. Takuma Sato KV + 6 laps

Retirements:

Charlie Kimball Ganassi 77 laps
Mike Conway Andretti 76 laps
Alex Tagliani Sam Schmidt 71 laps
Will Power Penske 66 laps
Sebastian Saavedra Conquest 43 laps
Tony Kanaan KV 2 laps
(ht: autosport.com)

One final post-race Tweet came across the screen as this posting was being finalized ...

12WillPower Will Power -by toomuchracing - @dariofranchitti hey princess thanks for that nice tap today--appreciate it


The Edmonton Indy, Round 11 of 18 takes place at Rexall Edmonton Indy Speedway - Edmonton, Alberta, Canada - on Versus at 2:00pm ET, July 24, 2011.

... notes from The EDJE


(Article first published as Honda Indy Toronto - Round 10 of 18, "Tweet"-By-LiveBlog Entry on Technorati)Source URL: http://allnewfordcar.blogspot.com/search/label/Honda%20Indy%20Toronto
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