Sebastien Bourdais Qualifying Summary:
Sebastien Bourdais, who qualified on the pole in Phoenix and fifth for the Indianapolis 500 and at Texas in the first three oval races this year, made progress today on the 0.894-mile Iowa Speedway oval in Newton, IA. Bourdais, one of the few drivers unable to test here prior to this weekend, was 19th on the speed charts after morning practice. In qualifying, he piloted the No. 18 Team SealMaster – Dale Coyne Racing with Vasser-Sullivan car to a two-lap average speed of 177.681 mph putting him 15th on the grid for tomorrow’s race. With another practice scheduled for this evening the team is confident they can continue to improve the car as they have done throughout the season.
Sebastien Bourdais Qualifying Quote:
“The SealMaster crew did the best they could with just the one hour of practice. Not being able to do the test with Firestone a few weeks back (due to wet track conditions) really hurt us. The car was pushing, then loose, a little bit of everything. I had no grip and the car was bouncing up and down. It’s a shame because we usually find solutions, just not in one hour. We will just have to go back, review the data and see what we can come up with for tomorrow.”
Fast Facts:
- Bourdais has qualified in the top-five five times and top-10 seven times in the first 11 races of the 2018 Verizon IndyCar Series season. He captured the pole at Phoenix, qualified third for the INDYCAR Grand Prix and at Barber, fifth for the Indianapolis 500 and at Texas, sixth at Road American and ninth at Long Beach.
- Bourdais has a best starting position of sixth (2014) in five attempts at Iowa Speedway.
- In four previous races at Iowa, he has two top-10 finishes (eighth in 2016 and ninth in 2015).
- Bourdais is ninth in the championship standings with 235 points on the strength of four top-10 finishes (three in the top-five) including a win at St. Petersburg, a fourth place finish in the INDYCAR GP and a fifth at Barber Motorsports Park (eighth in Texas).
- Bourdais is contesting his 13th Verizon IndyCar Series season, third with Dale Coyne Racing and first with Dale Coyne Racing w/ Vasser-Sullivan.
- The 2018 Iowa Corn 300 will be Bourdais’ 182nd Verizon IndyCar Series start, 38th on an oval and fifth at Iowa Speedway.
- In 181 career IndyCar starts, Bourdais has won 37 races (sixth all-time) and captured 34 pole positions (seventh all-time).
- Of Bourdais’ 37 career oval starts, 29 have come in the last six years (28 in last five years).
- Bourdais has made 30 IndyCar oval starts (includes 2005 Indy 500) with a best qualifying effort of first (pole) at Phoenix in 2018. Phoenix was his first pole since Mid-Ohio in 2014 and first on an oval since 2006 when he captured the pole at Milwaukee (previous high was fourth at Fontana in 2013). His best finish is a victory at Milwaukee in 2015. It was his first oval win since 2006 also at Milwaukee.
- Bourdais made seven oval starts in Champ Car earning four victories: Lausitz, 2003; Las Vegas in 2004 and 2005; Milwaukee 2006 and capturing three poles: Lausitz, 2003; Las Vegas 2005 and Milwaukee in 2006.
- Bourdais is the only driver to win four consecutive IndyCar championships (2004 – 2007).
- Bourdais, 39, is a native of Le Mans, France but resides in St. Petersburg, Florida.
Broadcast Times:
Round 11 of the 2018 Verizon IndyCar Series, will be the Iowa Corn 300, July 8, on the Iowa Raceway 1-mile oval in Newton, IA. The race will be broadcast live on NBCSN at 2:00 p.m. ET. It is also available on radio: XM 209 and IMS IndyCar Radio as well as online: IndyCar.com and Verizon IndyCar 15 app.
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