In addition to the usual challenge of actually winning the Indy 500, for 2025 drivers and teams must now contend with a new and potentially decisive factor for this year’s edition of the Greatest Spectacle In Racing: the hybrid unit has its formal premiere at the 2.5 mile oval of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

IndyCar introduced its new hybrid drivetrain on July 2024 at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. Since then, it has raced on every type of racetrack, except a superspeedway. This is changing at the Indy 500, where competitors are trying to tame the hybrid unit and understand its effect on qualifying trim and, more importantly, the race on May 25.

While teams have been able to test the hybrid at IMS since last year, and everyone ran it during April’s Open Test, the formal practice for the Indianapolis 500 marks the point at which everything must work perfectly, as the most important race on IndyCar’s schedule approaches.

Added weight

For Josef Newgarden, the two -time reigning Indy 500 champion who strives for the three-peat driving Team Penske Chevrolet #2 car, the most important thing is not what the hybrid itself does, but the added mass to the cars.

“The big reason it’s driving differently is not necessarily the hybrid interacting with the car. It is the weight of the hybrid. That’s where you are getting all the comments”, Newgarden said on Wednesday after practice.

Newgarden commented on how the extra weight of the hybrid system challenges the tires, and forces teams to adjust the weight distribution. This is one of the main issues everyone is trying to solve before the green flag.

Josef Newgarden, Team Penske

Photo by: Penske Entertainment

“Why is the car different? It is just the weight is up. You’re 100, 110 pounds heavier. That’s a lot of mass percentage-wise that you are adding to this car. It’s saturating the tires more. It’s just moving around. The CG changes a little bit. It raises slightly. Your weight distribution is shifted depending on where teams are putting it. That’s what people are trying to figure out right now.”

“You add 100 pounds to this thing, it’s almost like adding 200, 250 pounds to a stock car. If you said, Hey, guys, we’re going to bolt 250 pounds to these stock cars, see what you think, I bet they would all go, Okay, this drives differently, and now we have to counteract it.”

Hybrids will be more important at Indy than any other race

IndyCar has already used the hybrid on road and street courses, as well as on different kinds of ovals at Iowa Speedway, WWT Raceway, and the Milwaukee Mile last year. However, according to Newgarden, the impact it will have on racing will be unlike anything seen at other facilities.

“The hybrid itself and the utilization, I have said this. I do think it’s very important here. It’s more important at this track than anywhere we’ve gone because of the drag level. We’ve not run in a superspeedway configuration yet with this hybrid, so it’s very, very low drag on the cars. Because of that, they’re very power-sensitive.”

“Any time you use something to add power, you feel the magnification of it here more than anywhere else. When you are using the hybrid on the straightaway, it makes a very big difference.”

When to deploy and when to regen

Indycar Hybrid decal

Photo by: Penske Entertainment

The way drivers deploy and regenerate the hybrid during the Indianapolis 500 could also impact the outcome, especially if the race ends in a close finish, as has been seen many times before.

“Where are you are regenerating it and where you are using it, to either pass or defend or for whatever situation, I think there’s repercussions for burning it, and there’s certainly reward for utilizing it correctly,” Newgarden concluded.

Who will master the hybrid for the first time in the Indy 500? The answer will come in less than ten days.

Photos from Indianapolis 500 – Practice 4

We have ourselves an abbreviated odds board this week. We’re actually lopping off nearly a third of the usual field of entries.

By Ericka Gillespie

Fort Gregg-Adams Public Affairs

FORT GREGG-ADAMS, Va. — NASCAR driver Justin Allgaier rolled into the installation on Wednesday to unveil a new patriotic paint scheme on his No. 7 Hellmann’s Chevrolet — this time with a special twist.

The event, held at Fort Gregg-Adams Commissary and hosted by DeCA supplier Unilever, featured a life-size racing car simulator wrapped in the new livery. The scheme proudly sported the Defense Commissary Agency logo, which will also appear on Allgaier’s car during the May 24 race at Charlotte Motor Speedway — just ahead of Memorial Day weekend.

“This partnership with DeCA and Unilever means a lot, especially going into Memorial Day,” Allgaier said. “It’s a way for us to honor the military community and thank them for their service and sacrifice.”

Families and fans gathered for a festive afternoon that included face painting, a balloon animal artist, live DJ music, prize giveaways, and a food station offering free deli sandwiches, chips and drinks.

Allgaier, a veteran driver with more than a dozen career wins in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, will carry the DeCA logo into competition at Charlotte Motor Speedway, where patriotic paint schemes are a Memorial Day tradition.

“This is more than just a paint scheme,” Allgaier said. “It’s about recognizing the men and women who serve — and making sure they know they’re appreciated both on and off the track.”

Image: https://www.abnewswire.com/upload/2025/05/4264d59a86bbb94cf10ba5ef66867f46.jpg

SSR Motorsports has taken on the role of distributor for QJMotor products in the U.S. Zhejiang Qianjiang Motorcycle Co., Ltd. (QJMotor) [https://global.qjmotor.com/], the parent company of Benelli Motorcycles, is a global leader in motorcycle design, engineering and manufacturing that produces a comprehensive line of street models. QJ models, which have been available in the U.S. since the spring, complement SSR’s popular line of on-road motorcycles, off-road motorcycles and side-by-sides.

“QJMotor has models that are right for the U.S. market and hit some key price points and model segments,” said Greg Blackwell, SSR’s vice president of sales and marketing.

The initial QJ lineup features 11 models, from the SRF135 street mini to the mighty SRT750X adventure bike.

Image: https://www.abnewswire.com/upload/2025/05/db53d7b728e94ce9731c5a4749c11556.jpg

QJMotor SRF 135

“Dealers are signing up with SSR to sell QJ because we can supply dealer demand; we have the inventory ready to ship,” Blackwell said. “We’ll also help the dealers promote QJ in their own market. QJ models look great and perform even better.”

SSR is adding new QJ dealerships each week as the network – and product offerings – grow.

Along with its well-known off-road and on-road models, SSR is embracing QJ’s international marketing strategy by focusing on the QJMOTOR brand while still selling Benelli models, with special pricing available.

Image: https://www.abnewswire.com/upload/2025/05/895de2be91f2ad4c50b12e2f7b340747.jpg

QJMotor [https://global.qjmotor.com/] SRT 750X

True to the SSR way, current Benelli riders can count on the company for any necessary warranty work, and SSR continues to stock replacement parts through its national network of SSR dealers.

Media Contact
Company Name: QJMOTOR
Email:Send Email [https://www.abnewswire.com/email_contact_us.php?pr=ssr-motorsports-chosen-as-us-distributor-for-qjmotor]
Address:No. 169 Jimping Rd. Wenling
City: Taizhou city
State: Zhejiang
Country: China
Website: https://global.qjmotor.com/

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This release was published on openPR.

​The National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Educations Services Day is taking place today.

Located at Toronto Motorsports Park, this event is bringing students in from the District School Board of Niagara and showing them more about the world of racing and trades.

One of the speakers is Conestoga College teacher Jason Hardie, who explains a bit about what students can expect to see that day.

Hardie teaches Heavy Equipment Repair, and he is always hoping to see more students pass through his class.

He just went to a recent meeting where it was made clear that a focus on the trades is needed.

Hardie says reaching directly to students like this, in a new and exciting way, can go a long way in helping fill this gap.

Students will hear from speakers, speak with professionals, and of course, watch some racing.

The Victoria Day Weekend Spectacular also kicks off on Friday and runs until Sunday, and offers no shortage of attractions for all types of racing lovers. Passes can be purchased for individual days, or as a weekend bundle for Friday, Saturday and Sunday through Toronto Motorsports Park’s website.

(Written by: Matt LeBlanc)

Legislation to allow private sponsorship of city parks and other public facilities in order to garner more revenue for the city was unanimously adopted Wednesday by the Honolulu City Council.

Introduced in January by Council member Radiant Cordero, Bill 4 will “create and enhance public-private relationships, including with individuals, corporations, and other organizations, through the creation of commercial sponsorships.”

“Private sponsorships will create alternate revenue streams that will increase the city’s ability to deliver services and to maintain city assets, including its facilities, parks, programs, equipment, and tangible property, and provide enhanced levels of service and maintenance beyond the core levels funded from the city’s general fund for the benefit of users and the community at large,” the bill states.

The measure will also allow the director of a city agency to enter into a sponsorship agreement, but only for a term of less than five years, with a financial contribution of less than $50,000. Sponsorship agreements of $50,000 or more and agreements for a period of five years or more must be approved by a resolution adopted by the Council, the bill says.

Bill 4’s approval comes as the nine-member Council and city administration allege budgetary constraints for the coming 2026 fiscal year, which begins July 1.

Those multimillion-dollar costs include siting the city’s next solid-­waste landfill on Oahu; operating and maintaining ongoing city rail services toward downtown; and implementing a total increase of 115% for sewer fees across all rate-paying classes over a 10-year period to address rising operational costs and fund critical sewage treatment projects within the city’s $10.1 billion capital improvement program, scheduled for
2025-2040.

During public testimony, Kaimuki resident Tim Garry lauded Bill 4.

“This could be a game changer for so many things, to where we don’t have to tax everybody to death,” he said.

Garry said the measure’s intent could be like the city’s Adopt a Park program, “where somebody takes responsibility for a certain part of the public” properties.

“The possibilities are endless,” he said. “There are so many trusts, and foundations that are set up that have to give away money
every year.”

And he added, “I hope to see all of the Council people in NASCAR uniforms, with sponsorships all over their body.”

Council member Andria Tupola said the measure “really gives us a real pathway to bring in revenue, create partnerships and move our city forward.”

Representing the Leeward Coast, Tupola said her focus for sponsorships included approximately 400 acres of former Barbers Point Naval Air Station lands, also known as Kalaeloa, that the city officially took possession of in June.

Mayor Rick Blangiardi’s administration asserts that many in the public had asked for Kalaeloa to feature city parks and other recreational opportunities, including a racetrack.

“There is just no way we’re going to come up with the kind of funds that we need to create a sports facility or a racetrack,” said Tupola. “We are going to need to really rely on these community partnerships.”

Council Chair Tommy
Waters also supported Bill 4.

“And I just want to assure the public we’re not talking about renaming the Fasi Building or Honolulu Hale, but really we’re talking about things like … the basketball court at the Blaisdell Center, or the stage at the Tom Moffatt Shell, or … a sponsorship of the lawn at the Shell,” he said. “We’re just being creative and finding other ways of raising
revenues for our city.”

And alluding to a first-­reading measure he had
introduced at the same meeting, Waters quipped that sponsorship revenues could even be deposited in the city’s sewer fund to offset costs associated with the city’s pending 115% sewer fee hike.

In March the Council adopted Resolution 50, which urged the city Department of Enterprise Services to pursue the sponsorship of naming rights for Neal S. Blaisdell Center at 777 Ward Ave.

Typically, naming rights means the city may grant people or organizations the opportunity to have their names associated with a facility, such as a stadium or arena, in exchange for financial contributions.

As an example, the resolution notes that in 2020 the University of Hawaii and Bank of Hawaii entered into a 10-year, $5 million sponsorship agreement for the naming rights of the Stan Sheriff Center, now known as the SimpliFi Arena at
Stan Sheriff Center, at UH’s Manoa campus.

DES Director Dita Holifield previously told the Council her department was excited to pursue this revenue-­generating opportunity to improve the Blaisdell campus. But she also said that based on discussions with the city Department of the Corporation Counsel, existing city laws do not allow for the sponsorship of naming rights.

The Blaisdell Center, originally called the Honolulu International Center, was built in 1964.