Live from Trackside – Grand Prix of Houston

Sunday, June 29
5:25 p.m.
Wow, what a race… P19 to 4th! The No. 83 Levemir® FlexTouch® Chevrolet was quick – I kind of like it in the Levemir® FlexTouch® green. The Novo Nordisk Chip Ganassi Racing guys did an awesome job in pit lane and the Chevy guys have been working really hard all weekend to give us an engine that’s drivable and gets good mileage. Overall I’m really happy with a top-five finish. We just drove the wheels off of it when we could!

Thanks for all of the support. On to Pocono!

Pre-race #2.

“Drivers, to your cars!”

Post-race interviews.

12:05 p.m.
Unfortunately our qualifying result today didn’t really show the speed of the No. 83 car. We’ll start race 2 in P19, but as we proved yesterday, I know we can move up from there with good strategy and consistency. I think the conditions will be pretty different than yesterday so it will be interesting to see how the race pans out.

I’m heading into a team strategy meeting now, but I was able to take a few minutes with some fans earlier. Thanks to Gus, Robert and Seth for coming out to the race today!

Tune in to race 2 of the Grand Prix of Houston at 3 p.m. Eastern on NBC Sports Network!

Ready for the systems check!

Pre-qualifying #2.

A new friend (and fellow type 1) Gus!

Showing Robert and his friends the No. 83 car.

Another little fan–Seth.

8:20 a.m.
Good morning! It’s race day, again! But today we plan on finishing our day on a higher note than yesterday for sure. I had a very mundane evening last night (just how I like it on a double-header weekend)… room service, then early to bed.

We’ll head out for the systems check at 9, then the No. 83 Levemir® FlexTouch® Chevrolet will qualify with Group 2 at 10. The format for qualifying today is two groups, no knock-out rounds. Race Control will use our fastest laps to determine the starting grid. Check it out live via INDYCAR Race Control, and follow my Pit Lane Reporter (PLR) @racewithinsulin on Twitter for more updates.

Thanks, as always, for the messages of support after the race yesterday!

Saturday, June 28
5:25 p.m.
Overall it’s a disappointing finish for the No. 83 Levemir® FlexTouch® Chevrolet, to record 18th for race 1. I have to say our race car was quick. Not only does it look good but it was pretty fast as well. A lot of credit goes to the Novo Nordisk Chip Ganassi Racing team. They worked really hard over the last few weeks testing and then coming here to Houston. We had a pretty good car, definitely a top-10 car after spending spent all day running up there. With what shook out in the last few laps, it looked like we could have finished in the top-5. It’s tough but we’ve got another one tomorrow so we can fight hard again.

New gloves to match the race weekend livery.

A wet and slick start to race 1.

Green!

A quick swap to a new front wing and fresh tires.

12:40 p.m.
It’s race day! We started the day off with Firestone Fast Six qualifying. I had a pretty quick car, but the times are just so close this weekend. We ended up P7 in Round 1, about eight-hundredths of a second from P6 which would have gotten us to Round 2. So close! But we’ll start P13 and I know the No. 83 Levemir® FlexTouch® Chevrolet is capable of moving up from there.

It’s pretty hot out there today but there’s been a few sprinkles here and there to cool us off. We’ll see how any precipitation plays into the strategy today.

Tune in to the first race of the Grand Prix of Houston at 3 p.m. Eastern on NBC Sports Network! Also be sure to follow my Pit Lane Reporter (PLR) @racewithinsulin for updates during the race.

Friday, June 27
5:15 p.m.
Overall we’re pretty pleased with the second session. We didn’t get the chance to run new there at the end like some of the guys did because of the red flag, but I was happy with the standing start practice. We made some changes to the car that weren’t quite as good, so I think we’ll go back on that. It just gives us direction ahead of qualifying tomorrow morning. All in all, the No. 83 Levemir® FlexTouch® Chevrolet looks great and seems to be pretty quick already!

We’ll be in group 1 for qualifying at 10 a.m. Central tomorrow. Tune in to NBC Sports Network for their qualifying broadcast at 2 p.m. Eastern before the race at 3 p.m.

Thanks to all of the fans who came out today for practice and for the autograph session. I know it’s hot–we appreciate the support!

New boots to match the suit and car!

Ready for practice 2.

Pit stop practice for the No. 83 crew.

Changes during the second session.

11:45 a.m.
That was a pretty good start to our race weekend. We finished P14, but the lap times were really close within the full field. I think we made a lot gains during the test days last week in Sebring which are helping us today as far as car setup and adjustments. The Novo Nordisk Chip Ganassi Racing team will keep working hard to move up the time sheet this afternoon at 2.

What do you think of the new livery for the No. 83 car?

New colors for the No. 83!

Getting set for practice 1.

A couple of changes during practice.

Thursday, June 26
2:10 p.m.
Hello from Houston! The good news? It’s not unbearably hot. The bad news? It is looking like it could rain during our track walk at 3. I arrived in town yesterday for a media advance and attended the transporter parade before some interviews. This morning I had an early live TV hit at the track, then caught a quick nap before heading back for the ribbon cutting to officially open the track.

Ribbon cutting and MD Anderson Cancer Center flag raising ceremony.

You’ll also notice the No. 83 has a new look this weekend… I’m really honored that Novo Nordisk is using our IndyCar program to help launch their new Levemir® FlexTouch® product. The new colors look really sharp! Keep an eye out for photos soon.

After a couple of weekends away from the race track, I can’t wait to get on track here in Houston for the Verizon IndyCar Series double-header. It will be a tough one with the late June heat for drivers and crews alike, but the Novo Nordisk Chip Ganassi Racing team will be mentally and physically prepared. We had two successful days testing in Sebring last week so we were able to try a few things to simulate the street course. I’m also excited to debut the new colors of the No. 83 Levemir® FlexTouch® Chevrolet–it looks great and I know it will be fast. It will be all about being smart and consistent this weekend once we hit the track.

Here’s the race weekend schedule (all times local/Central):
Friday, June 27
10-10:45 a.m. Practice
2-2:55 p.m. Practice and Standing Start Practice
4 p.m. Autograph session (in the INDYCAR Fan Village)
Saturday, June 28
10-11:10 a.m. Qualifying #1 (broadcast on NBCSN at 1 p.m. Central)
2 p.m. Race #1 (live on NBCSN)
Sunday, June 29
10-10:30 a.m. Qualifying #2
2 p.m. Race #2 (live on NBCSN)

Live timing for all sessions is available via Race Control. And, starting tomorrow, all practice sessions will now stream live on Race Control! Don’t forget to follow my Pit Lane Reporter (PLR) on Twitter @racewithinsulin for more updates while I’m on track.