Just a few hours earlier than the beginning of Saturday evening’s Hy-Vee Homefront 250, A.J. Foyt Racing PR veteran Anne Fornoro introduced her group some new tribute stickers made in honor the just lately departed racing legend Parnelli Jones, who died in June on the age of 90.
Pit crews for the group’s No. 14 Chevy pushed by Santino Ferrucci and the No. 41 Chevy piloted by Stint Ray Robb utilized the stickers to each vehicles, just under the automobile numbers on the roll hoop (beneath), and when Ferrucci returned 250 laps later, he’d earned the group’s finest end of the season after beginning eighth, being penalized to restarting out of line, serving a penalty and dropping a lap, and charging again to sixth on the checkered flag.
Teammate Robb additionally registered his finest end of 2024 after beginning twenty fourth and ending fifteenth. It was a banner day for each Foyt vehicles, racing with the 1961 Indianapolis 500 winner alongside for the journey, the place Ferrucci as soon as once more confirmed his oval prowess, and Robb demonstrated his capabilities whereas others faltered or crashed, introduced quite a lot of smiles and pleasure on pit lane.
“I don’t suppose anybody’s received my racecraft on these brief ovals,” Ferrucci instructed RACER. “The closest and finest driver out right here might be Josef Newgarden. He additionally moved from the again to the entrance, however I believe it’s us only for race pure racecraft to return to entrance and yeah, we did it with Parnelli Jones on board. I questioned who the hell is driving the automobile! Makes much more sense now.
“However I believe between the 2 of us, on brief oval racecraft, we’re unmatched. I believe we simply proved that once more tonight.”
It took a stern radio message from group president and race strategist Larry Foyt to get Ferrucci’s head again within the sport after he was ordered to carry out a stop-and-go on lap 43 for the restart violation, adopted by a second penalty for failing to comply with IndyCar’s instructions.
Plummeting from fifth to twenty second, Ferrucci needed to dig deep, get again on the lead lap, and salvage an honest end result for the No. 14 Chevy. From there, he placed on a present, passing vehicles excessive and low, and received to sixth in the long run.
“I believe we threw away a podium tonight early on, then it sort of simply received worse, and Larry simply got here on the radio and mainly mentioned, ‘Develop up and get on with it.’”
Ferrucci’s seventh prime 10 end result from 11 occasions moved him from thirteenth within the drivers’ championship to being tied for eleventh with Andretti World’s Marcus Ericsson, and getting into Sunday’s Race 2 at Iowa, the Connecticut native is simply seven factors away from breaking into the highest 10.
