Dale Coyne Racing (DCR) is an American professional open-wheel racing team that currently competes in the IndyCar Series and Indy NXT. The team was founded in 1984 and is owned by former driver Dale Coyne. From 1995 to 2000, the team was known as Payton-Coyne Racing, reflecting a partnership with Chicago Bears great Walter Payton.[1][2] After the 1988 season, Coyne stepped out of the cockpit and turned his talents to the tutelage of several up-and-coming drivers. Once known for competing on budgets far smaller than most of their competitors, the team earned its maiden victory after 25 years at Watkins Glen International in July 2009 with Justin Wilson.
Dale Coyne raced smaller open-cockpit cars during the late-1970s and early-1980s before pursuing a career in the fledgling CART series. He attempted to qualify, with limited success, for each CART race in 1984, but his efforts earned him a CART franchise for the following season.[3] In 1986, the team raced the Coyne DC-1, which was a 1984 Lola Indy car modified to fit a Chevrolet stock-block engine.[4] The team reverted to a customer March chassis for the next season, with Coyne doing all of the driving. Due to budget constraints, the team utilized one of the only stock-block Chevrolet engines in the field. After utilizing the 1986 Rookie of the Year Dominic Dobson for one race in 1988 with little improvement in performance, Coyne realized that the team could not improve without better equipment.[5] In 1989, the team upgraded to a pair of 1988 Lola-Cosworth cars for Italian pay drivers Guido Dacco and Fulvio Ballabio.[6]
The end of 1988 saw Coyne's retirement as a driver to concentrate on tutoring newer, younger drivers, although he contested several more races as a driver through 1991. In 1990, the team fielded a new Lola car for Dean Hall, thanks to full-time sponsorship from the Japanese [insight] group. The chief mechanic, Bernie Myers, ensured a well-prepared car that earned the team its first start at the Indy 500 and scored 4 points during the season.[7] The team's mechanical expertise was recognized as both Coyne and Myers would be awarded the Clint Brawner Mechanical Excellence Award at the 1990 and 1992 Indy 500 races, respectively.[8]
For much of the team's subsequent years, it has utilized pay drivers, who finance their racing with Coyne with either personal funds or self-obtained sponsorship. Often, the team ran one driver for a full season, with a second car being prepared for a rotation of drivers with only a partial season of financing. However, Coyne earned a reputation for quickly developing the skills of these drivers to a point where they could advance their careers. Drivers of note who had their first CART ride with Coyne included eventual series champion Paul Tracy, the Indy Lights champion Éric Bachelart, and eventual Le Mans winner André Lotterer.
Despite the lack of competitive results during its first two decades of operation, the team was nevertheless a consistent full-time entrant year after year. Ex-Formula 1 driver Roberto Moreno, starting his second stint in CART racing in 1996, broke through with the team's first podium finish at the 1996 U.S. 500.
Michel Jourdain Jr. took over driving duties for the team and earned STP Most Improved Driver honors from his peers, in 1997. Jourdain would continue with the team through the 1999 season. Meanwhile, the second car was provided to various drivers with few competitive results.
In 2000, Tarso Marques led the team with 17 starts following a deal with Swift Engineering for the team to field a factory-supported Swift chassis. He was joined by Takuya Kurosawa, who drove 8 starts, including an inspired drive at Long Beach which saw Kurosawa becoming the first Japanese driver to lead a CART race before an accident ended his hopes of a Top 10 finish. Alex Barron and Gualter Salles also shared the second car. Marques and Barron both recorded career-best finishes when the season closed. Barron, in particular, ran as high as second place in Australia before suffering an engine failure, and was in contention at Fontana, where he led the race for several laps and was in contention for victory before again retiring with an engine failure.[9]
The team struggled to stay afloat in 2001, following a short-lived partnership with the Project Racing Group that only enabled the team to contest two races.[10] Coyne reemerged the following year to field the one-off Team St. George entry with driver Darren Manning, which resulted in a competitive run to 9th place at the 2002 Rockingham 500.[11] Later in the season, Coyne provided Andre Lotterer with his only Champ Car start in Mexico.
The Coyne team returned to full-time competition in 2003, fielding six drivers with a top result of 6th place by the veteran Salles, although the other drivers were seldom competitive.
In 2007, driver Bruno Junqueira recorded back-to-back-to-back podium finishes– Zolder, Belgium, Assen, Netherlands and Surfers Paradise, Australia–en route to a seventh-place finish for the year.
In 2008, the team's first year in the IndyCar Series, drivers Bruno Junqueira and Mario Moraes recorded five combined top-10 finishes and both drivers led several laps during the famed Indianapolis 500.
In the first race of the 2009 season, the Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, driver Justin Wilson finished third, which was the first IRL podium finish for Dale Coyne Racing. On July 5, 2009, Wilson earned Dale Coyne Racing their first win by winning the Camping World Grand Prix at the Glen, at Watkins Glen International. The British driver dominated the race, leading 49 of the 60 laps. It was Coyne's 558th career start as an owner or as a driver.[12]
On January 11 the team announced that Boy Scouts of America would be the primary sponsor of the number 19 car for 2010. He also stated that Z Line will likely return to sponsor the number 18 car and that drivers would be announced at a later date.[13] However, on February 4, it was announced that Z Line would follow Justin Wilson to Dreyer & Reinbold Racing. On March 4, DCR announced Milka Duno would drive the number 18 Citgo car for the entire season.[14] Duno's season brought her the best finish of 19th, though she failed to qualify for the Indy 500 and ended up 23rd in points while British driver Alex Lloyd in the #19 car won Rookie of the Year, finishing 16th in points with a best finish of fourth in the 2010 Indianapolis 500. Duno moved over to ARCA following the season. British rookie James Jakes stepped into the #18 car for 2011 and four-time Champ Car champion Sébastien Bourdais was signed to drive the #19 respectively for road course races only due to conflicts with the Le Mans Series, where he also competed. Alex Lloyd was returned to the team to drive in the oval races. Lloyd qualified for the 2011 Indianapolis 500 and finished 19th but Jakes failed to make the field.
On January 25, 2012, Honda and its Honda Performance Development (HPD) announced it would power a two-car effort for Dale Coyne Racing in the 2012 IZOD IndyCar Series with their all-new 2.2-liter turbocharged V6 IndyCar engine. Justin Wilson also returned to the team for the 2012 season. In addition to the signing of both Honda and Wilson, the team has also re-signed renowned engineer Bill Pappas, "putting the band back together" of the team that combined to score Dale Coyne Racing's first win in IndyCar racing, at Watkins Glen in 2009.[15]
The team scored its second win and first-ever oval win with Justin Wilson at Texas Motor Speedway in 2012 and captured another win in 2013 with Mike Conway in his first start for the team in Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix race 1. In that race Justin Wilson finished third, putting two Coyne cars on the podium for the first time. Ana Beatriz had driven Conway's car for the first five races of the season.
For 2014, Wilson would remain in the No. 19 while Formula Renault 3.5 driver Carlos Huertas would take over the No. 18 for the season. Huertas would score his first career win at the first round of the Grand Prix of Houston.
In 2015, Carlos Huertas made his return to the No. 18 car and rookie Francesco Dracone drove the No. 19 in the first few races of the season. In May 2015, it was announced that Huertas had an ear problem and could not continue racing for the season. It was also announced that Dracone was released from the team. Pippa Mann then drove the rest of the oval races for the season in the No. 18 car and Rodolfo González drove the rest of the road courses for the remainder of the season in that car. After Francesco Dracone's release from the No. 19, James Davison drove the car in the Indianapolis 500 and 2013 rookie Tristan Vautier drove the No. 19 for the remainder of the season.
In 2016, rookie Conor Daly drove the No. 18 car sponsored by Johnathon Byrd's Group for the entirety of the 2016 season. He finished the year 18th in the standings. The No. 19 entry had three drivers that shared seat time, which included Luca Filippi, RC Enerson, Pippa Mann, and Gabby Chaves. Gabby Chaves drove for the team in the 100th Indianapolis 500 while RC Enerson had two very impressive appearances at Mid-Ohio and Watkins Glen.
For 2017, it was announced that Sébastien Bourdais would drive the No. 18 car, to be joined by engineers Craig Hampson, who he won his 4 Champ Car titles with at Newman-Haas Racing and Olivier Boisson, who he won races with at KVSH Racing. In addition, 2016 Indy Lights champion Ed Jones would drive the No. 19 car. The team had early success to start the season with Bourdais winning at St. Petersburg and finishing second at Long Beach and holding an early season points lead, while Jones was 7th in points after two races after back-to-back top-ten finishes. After a moderately successful race at Barber Motorsports Park, however, Bourdais' fortunes began to turn sour, as early retirements plagued the No. 18 both at Phoenix and the Indianapolis road course. Bourdais' season then came to a sudden end during qualifying for the Indy 500, where a severe accident left him with multiple pelvic fractures and a fractured hip. James Davison was hired as a last-minute replacement for the 500. Ex-F1 driver Esteban Gutiérrez was then signed to drive the car until Bourdais' return (at Gateway after a rapid recovery), except for the Texas round where Tristan Vautier returned to the team. Jones would go on to win Rookie of the Year honors on the strength of his 3rd place finish at the Indy 500 but would depart for Chip Ganassi Racing at the end of the year.
Sebastien Bourdais continued driving in the No. 18 car with a continuation of the Vasser-Sullivan partnership which had also been extended for multiple years.[18] Bourdais' best finish was a podium achieved at Barber Motorsports Park. Santino Ferrucci would return to the team for the full season in 2019 running as the only driver in a David Yurman sponsored No. 19 car.[19] His best finish of the season came at the opening race of 9th with another Top 10 at the IndyCar Grand Prix. James Davison will join the team for the 2019 Indianapolis 500 in a partnership with Jonathan Byrd's Racing, Hollinger MotorSport, and Belardi Auto Racing in a continuation of the partnership from last year but changing from A.J. Foyt Racing continuing to use the No. 33.[20]
In December 2021, the team announced they would be signing Takuma Sato to race full-time for the 2022 season in the No. 51 car, replacing the outgoing Romain Grosjean.[21] Also, they would partner with HMD Motorsports in the #18 for David Malukas. Malukas returned to the team for 2023, while Sting Ray Robb made his IndyCar debut in the No. 51 car for the season.
Chicagoland Speedway
In 1998, Coyne designed and built Route 66 Raceway in Joliet, Illinois. This state-of-the-art drag racing facility drew the attention of Indianapolis Motor Speedway CEO Tony George. George and Coyne, along with International Speedway Corporation, would go on to expand the facility by forming a partnership and building Chicagoland Speedway. Coyne served as president of the facility through its construction and opening season and along with George, served on its management committee until its eventual buyout by ISC in 2007.
Sébastien Olivier Bourdais is a French professional racing driver who currently races in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship for Cadillac Chip Ganassi Racing in the GTP category. He is one of the most successful drivers in the history of American open-wheel car racing, having won 37 races. He won four successive championships under Champ Car World Series sanction from 2004 to 2007. Later he competed at the IndyCar Series from 2011 to 2021. He also entered 27 races in Formula One for the Toro Rosso team during 2008 and the start of 2009.
James "Jimmy" Vasser Jr. is an American former racing driver who competed primarily in the CART series and Champ Car. Vasser won ten CART series races and won the 1996 CART championship with Chip Ganassi Racing. Vasser was the last American to win the CART title. Vasser won the 1996 U.S. 500, and had a best finish of 4th at the Indianapolis 500 twice.
Bruno Junqueira is a Brazilian race car driver who most recently competed in the IRL IndyCar Series. He is a former Formula 3000 champion and three-time runner-up in the Champ Car World Series.
Oriol Servià Imbers is a Spanish racing driver who competes part-time in the IndyCar Series. He raced for Dragon Racing in the 2014–15 Formula E season, and left the series prior to the 2015 Miami ePrix to become managing director for the technical and commercial partnerships of Dragon Racing. Servià holds a degree in mechanical engineering from the Polytechnic University of Catalonia. Since 2018 he also serves as pace car driver at IndyCar races outside the Indianapolis 500.
Dale Coyne is an IndyCar Series team owner and former Champ Car auto racing team owner and driver.
KV Racing Technology was an auto racing team that last competed in the IndyCar Series. The team was originally formed as PK Racing before the 2003 season by Australian businessman Kevin Kalkhoven and former Formula One team manager Craig Pollock from the remnants of the PacWest team.
The 2006 Bridgestone Presents the Champ Car World Series Powered by Ford season was the 28th overall and the third and penultimate season of the Champ Car World Series era of American open wheel racing. It began on April 9, 2006 in Long Beach, California and ended on November 12 in Mexico City, Mexico after 14 races. The Bridgestone Presents the Champ Car World Series Powered by Ford Drivers' Champion was Sébastien Bourdais, his third consecutive championship. He was the first driver to win three American open wheel National Championships in a row since Ted Horn in 1948. The Rookie of the Year was Will Power.
The Grand Prix of Portland is a race in the IndyCar Series held at the Portland International Raceway in Portland, Oregon. The race was an annual event from 1984 to 2007, initially as a race in the CART series, and later as part of the Champ Car World Series. After a ten-year hiatus, the race made its return to the IndyCar Series in the 2018 season.
The 2004 Champ Car World Series season was the 26th overall season in the CART/Champ Car genealogy, and the first under the ownership of Open-Wheel Racing Series (OWRS) as the Champ Car World Series. It began on April 18, 2004, and ended on November 7 after 14 races. For sponsorship purposes, it was branded as Bridgestone Presents the Champ Car World Series Powered by Ford. The Drivers' Champion was Sébastien Bourdais. The Rookie of the Year was A. J. Allmendinger.
The 2003 Champ Car World Series, the twenty-fifth and final in the Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART) era of American open-wheel car racing, consisted of 18 races, beginning in St. Petersburg, Florida, United States on February 23 and concluding in Surfers Paradise, Queensland, Australia on October 26. For sponsorship purposes, it was branded as Bridgestone Presents the Champ Car World Series Powered by Ford.
The 1996 PPG Indy Car World Series season was the eighteenth in the Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART) era of American open-wheel car racing. It consisted of 16 races, beginning in Homestead, Florida on March 3 and concluding in Monterey, California on September 8. This was the first season after the split with the Indy Racing League and the last year that CART operated under the name "IndyCar", with the trademark reverting to Indianapolis Motor Speedway at season's end. The Indianapolis 500 was replaced by the U.S. 500, held at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn, Michigan.
Newman/Haas Racing was an auto racing team that competed in CART, Champ Car, and the IndyCar Series from 1983 to 2011. The team operations were based in Lincolnshire, Illinois. Newman/Haas Racing was formed as a partnership between actor, automotive enthusiast and semi-professional racer Paul Newman and long-time auto racing owner/driver Carl Haas. The duo were competitors in sports car racing during the 1970s and early 1980s. In 1983, they joined forces to enter the ranks of Indy car racing. Newman/Haas was one of the most successful teams in Indy car racing during the 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s. The team won 105 CART/Champ Car races and eight season championships, followed by two race wins in the IRL/IndyCar Series.
Edward Jones is an Emirati-born British racing driver who competes part-time in the IMSA SportsCar Championship, driving the No. 20 Oreca 07 for High Class Racing, and part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the Nos. 24/26 Toyota Supra for Sam Hunt Racing. Primarily an open wheel racing driver, Jones previously competed in the Formula Renault Eurocup, Formula Three, Indy Lights, IndyCar Series and FIA World Endurance Championship.
Santino Michael Ferrucci is an American racing driver. He competes in the IndyCar Series, driving the No 14 Chevrolet for A.J. Foyt Racing. He has also previously raced in the FIA Formula 2 Championship.
The 2017 Verizon IndyCar Series was the 22nd season of the Verizon IndyCar Series and the 106th official championship season of American open wheel racing. The premier event was the 101st Indianapolis 500 won by Takuma Sato. Josef Newgarden, the 2011 Indy Lights champion, in his sixth full-time season in the IndyCar Series, won the championship. It was Newgarden's first season as part of Team Penske, and he collected four wins, one pole position, and ten top-five finishes. It was Team Penske's 15th Indy car season championship, and third in four years.
Vasser Sullivan is an American organization involved in motorsports. It was founded in 2010 by James “Sulli” Sullivan as SH Racing to compete in motocross. In 2011, the team partnered with KV Racing Technology to form KVSH Racing. Following a two-year hiatus after the demise of KV Racing Technology, Sullivan and former KV co-owner Jimmy Vasser announced that they had formed Vasser Sullivan. The organization has competed in racing series including: the Red Bull Global Rallycross Series under the SH Rallycross/DRR banner, the IndyCar Series where it has competed as co-entrants with KV as well as with Dale Coyne Racing, and the IMSA SportsCar Championship where it formerly partnered with Aim Autosport as Aim Vasser Sullivan before later competing independently.
The 2018 Verizon IndyCar Series was the 23rd season of the Verizon IndyCar Series and the 107th official championship season of American open wheel racing. The premier event was the 102nd Indianapolis 500, with Takuma Sato entering as the defending Indianapolis 500 winner. Josef Newgarden entered the season as the defending National Champion.
The 2018 Indianapolis 500 was a Verizon IndyCar Series held on Sunday, May 27, 2018, at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana. It was the premier event of the 2018 IndyCar Series. The race was won by Australian Will Power of Team Penske. Car owner Roger Penske collected his record extending 17th Indianapolis 500 victory. Chevrolet swept nine of the top eleven spots during qualifying, and finished 1st-2nd, Chevy's first Indy victory since 2015, and tenth overall. However, despite entering the month as prohibitive favorites to dominate the race, Chevy managed to place only two other cars in the top ten.
The 2020 NTT IndyCar Series was the 25th season of the IndyCar Series and the 109th official championship season of American open wheel racing. The premier event was the 2020 Indianapolis 500. Josef Newgarden entered the season as the defending National Champion. Honda entered as defending Manufacturers' Cup champion for the second consecutive season. It was the first year under Penske management after they took over in late 2019.
The 2021 NTT IndyCar Series was the 26th season of the IndyCar Series and the 110th official championship season of American open wheel racing. The premier event was the 2021 Indianapolis 500, won by Hélio Castroneves. It was the second year under Penske management after they took over in late 2019. Scott Dixon entered his 21st season competing for a National Championship as the defending champion, but ultimately finished the campaign in fourth place.
References
↑ Shaw, Jeremy (1995). Autocourse IndyCar Official Yearbook 1995-96. England: Hazleton Publishing. p.69. ISBN1-874557-51-9.
↑ Shaw, Jeremy (2000). Autocourse CART Official Champ Car Yearbook. England: Hazleton Publishing. p.60. ISBN1-874557-99-3.
↑ McNulty, Dean (July 6, 2009). "Perfect race on a perfect day". Cornwall Standard Freeholder. Cornwall, Ontario: Quebecor. p.11. Dale Coyne Racing, with Justin Wilson behind the wheel of the No. 18 Dallara Honda, gave the team its first victory in 558 tries– after more than 25 years of trying– in top tier open-wheel racing.
↑ "Vasser, Sullivan partner with Dale Coyne Racing". Racer.com. February 5, 2018. Retrieved May 15, 2019. Jimmy Vasser and James "Sulli" Sullivan are back in IndyCar, with the announcement of a new partnership with Dale Coyne.
↑ "Dale Coyne, Jimmy Vasser, and James Sullivan Announce Multi-Year Partnership". dalecoyneracing.com. January 23, 2019. Retrieved May 20, 2019. Dale Coyne Racing and Vasser-Sullivan announced today they have reached a new multi-year agreement that will see the two organizations competing together as co-entrants in the NTT IndyCar Series.
↑ "Santino Ferrucci Returns to Coyne for 2019 IndyCar Series Season". dalecoyneracing.com. November 20, 2018. Retrieved May 20, 2019. After making a strong impression in his four IndyCar Series starts this past year, American Santino Ferrucci will be returning to Dale Coyne Racing for 2019 to take on his first full season of IndyCar Racing alongside team veteran Sebastien Bourdais.
↑ "Coyne to run James Davison at 103rd Indianapolis 500 in Partnership with Byrd-Hollinger-Belardi". dalecoyneracing.com. March 8, 2019. Retrieved May 20, 2019. James Davison will be making a return to Dale Coyne Racing for the 103rd running of the Indianapolis 500 in May as the team partners with Jonathan Byrd's Racing, Hollinger MotorSport, and Belardi Auto Racing to run the #33 car for the Australian driver.
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