A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | CH | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9
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| IndyCar Series | |
|---|---|
| Location | St. Petersburg, Florida, U.S. 27°45′59″N 82°37′45″W / 27.76639°N 82.62917°W |
| Corporate sponsor | Firestone |
| First race | 1985 |
| First ICS race | 2005 |
| Distance | 1.800 mi (2.897 km) |
| Laps | 100 |
| Duration | 180.00 mi (289.68 km) |
| Previous names | St. Petersburg Grand Prix (1985–1990) Kash n' Karry Florida Grand Prix of St. Petersburg (1996–1997) Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg (2005–2013) Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg (2014–present) |
| Most wins (driver) | Hélio Castroneves (3) |
| Most wins (team) | Team Penske (11) |
| Most wins (manufacturer) | Chassis: Dallara (15) Engine: Honda (9) |
| Circuit information | |
| Surface | Asphalt/Concrete |
| Length | 2.910 km (1.808 mi) |
| Turns | 14 |
| Lap record | 1:00.6795 ( Josef Newgarden, Dallara DW12, 2024, IndyCar) |
The Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg is an IndyCar Series race held in St. Petersburg, Florida. In most years since 2009, the race has served as the season opener (or at minimum, the first race held on U.S. soil).[1] The race is held annually in the spring, with the exception of 2020, when it was postponed until October due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The race takes place on a temporary course, utilizing downtown streets, and one runway of Albert Whitted Airport. The event dates back to 1985, with IndyCars first competing in 2003.
History
The inaugural 1985 event was organized by William T. McVey, president of the McBri Corporation in Tampa and a member of IMSA and the SCCA.[2] The SCCA Trans-Am Series held a race on a St. Petersburg downtown waterfront circuit from 1985 to 1990. Can-Am also competed in 1985. Local residents and businesses complained about noise, and the event was eventually put on hiatus.[3] Driver Jim Fitzgerald was killed in a crash during the 1987 race.[4][5]
From 1996 to 1997, the St. Petersburg race was revived on a different course around Tropicana Field (about one mile west of the original waterfront course). Along with the Trans-Am Series, support races included U.S. FF2000, World Challenge, Pro SRF and Barber Dodge. The event subsequently went again on hiatus for several years.[3]
In 2003, the event was revived again for the CART Championship Series. A new, modified version of the original 1985 waterfront circuit was created. For 2004, the event was cancelled due to a dispute between the promoters, furthermore, the bankruptcy and liquidation of the CART series into the new Champ Car World Series saw a shakeup of the calendar. When the race returned in 2005, it switched to the IndyCar Series, marking the first non-oval event for the Indy Racing League. In 2007, the race weekend was expanded to include an American Le Mans Series event.
Andretti Green Promotions would later take over promotion of the event.[6] Starting in 2014, Firestone took over as title sponsor.[7]
Past winners
| Season | Date | Driver | Team | Chassis | Engine/Aero Kit | Tires | Race Distance | Race Time | Average Speed (mph) |
Report | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Laps | Miles (km) | |||||||||||
| CART Championship Series history | ||||||||||||
| 2003 | February 23 |  Paul Tracy
|
Forsythe Racing | Lola B02/00 | Ford–Cosworth XFE | Bridgestone | 105 | 189.630 (305.130) | 2:04:28 | 91.401 | Report | |
| 2004 | Not held | |||||||||||
| IndyCar Series history | ||||||||||||
| 2005 | April 3 |  Dan Wheldon
|
Andretti Green Racing | Dallara | Honda | Firestone | 100 | 180 (289.681) | 2:09:54 | 83.14 | Report | |
| 2006 | April 2 |  Hélio Castroneves
|
Team Penske | Dallara | Honda | Firestone | 100 | 180 (289.681) | 1:56:58 | 92.34 | Report | |
| 2007 | April 1 | Hélio Castroneves (2)
|
Team Penske (2) | Dallara | Honda | Firestone | 100 | 180 (289.681) | 2:01:07 | 89.166 | Report | |
| 2008 | April 6 | Graham Rahal
|
Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing | Dallara | Honda | Firestone | 83* | 149.4 (240.435) | 2:00:44 | 74.251 | Report | |
| 2009 | April 5 |  Ryan Briscoe
|
Team Penske (3) | Dallara | Honda | Firestone | 100 | 180 (289.681) | 2:12:27 | 81.542 | Report | |
| 2010 | March 29* | Will Power
|
Team Penske (4) | Dallara | Honda | Firestone | 100 | 180 (289.681) | 2:07:06 | 84.975 | Report | |
| 2011 | March 27 | Dario Franchitti
|
Chip Ganassi Racing | Dallara | Honda | Firestone | 100 | 180 (289.681) | 2:01:00 | 89.26 | Report | |
| 2012 | March 25 | Hélio Castroneves (3)
|
Team Penske (5) | Dallara DW12 | Chevrolet/UAK-12 | Firestone | 100 | 180 (289.681) | 1:59:51 | 90.113 | Report | |
| 2013 | March 24 | James Hinchcliffe
|
Andretti Autosport (2) | Dallara DW12 | Chevrolet/UAK-12 | Firestone | 110 | 198 (318.65) | 2:22:13 | 83.539 | Report | |
| 2014 | March 30 | Will Power (2)
|
Team Penske (6) | Dallara DW12 | Chevrolet/UAK-12 | Firestone | 110 | 198 (318.65) | 2:06:58 | 93.572 | Report | |
| 2015 | March 29 |  Juan Pablo Montoya
|
Team Penske (7) | Dallara DW12 | Chevrolet/CAK-15 | Firestone | 110 | 198 (318.65) | 2:16:58 | 86.735 | Report | |
| 2016 | March 13 | Juan Pablo Montoya (2)
|
Team Penske (8) | Dallara DW12 | Chevrolet/CAK-16 (5) | Firestone | 110 | 198 (318.65) | 2:13:28 | 89.006 | Report | |
| 2017 | March 12 |  Sébastien Bourdais
|
Dale Coyne Racing | Dallara DW12 | Honda/HAK-16 | Firestone | 110 | 198 (318.65) | 2:04:32 | 95.391 | Report | |
| 2018 | March 11 | Sébastien Bourdais (2)
|
Dale Coyne Racing (2) | Dallara DW12 | Honda/UAK-18 (9) | Firestone | 110 | 198 (318.65) | 2:17:48 | 86.207 | Report | |
| 2019 | March 10 | Josef Newgarden
|
Team Penske (9) | Dallara DW12 | Chevrolet/UAK-18 (6) | Firestone | 110 | 198 (318.65) | 2:04:18 | 95.572 | Report | |
| 2020 | October 25 | Josef Newgarden (2)
|
Team Penske (10) | Dallara DW12 | Chevrolet/UAK-18 (7) | Firestone | 100 | 180 (289.681) | 2:06:12 | 85.872 | Report | |
| 2021 | April 25 | Colton Herta
|
Andretti Autosport (3) | Dallara DW12 | Honda/UAK-18 (10) | Firestone | 100 | 180 (289.681) | 1:51:51 | 96.552 | Report | |
| 2022 | February 27 |  Scott McLaughlin
|
Team Penske (11) | Dallara DW12 | Chevrolet/UAK-18 (8) | Firestone | 100 | 180 (289.681) | 1:51:27 | 96.899 | Report | |
| 2023 | March 5 |  Marcus Ericsson
|
Chip Ganassi Racing (2) | Dallara DW12 | Honda/UAK-18 (11) | Firestone | 100 | 180 (289.681) | 2:05:30 | 86.047 | Report | |
| 2024 | March 10 |  Pato O'Ward
|
Arrow McLaren (1) | Dallara DW12 | Chevrolet/UAK-18 (9) | Firestone | 100 | 180 (289.681) | 1:51:29 | 96.867 | Report | |
- 2008: Race shortened as a result of inclement weather at the start forcing the race to start on Lap 10 after nine Safety Car laps. Shortened by ESPN under time limit.
- 2010: Race postponed from March 28 due to inclement weather.[8]
- 2020: Race postponed from March 15 to October 25 and shortened to 100 laps due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
- 2021: Race postponed from March 7 to April 25 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
- UAK = Universal Aero Kit
- CAK = Chevrolet Aero Kit
- HAK = Honda Aero Kit