Kimball places 21st and sixth in second doubleheader of season in Canada

TORONTO, Ontario – Novo Nordisk Chip Ganassi Racing (NNCGR) driver Charlie Kimball finished 21st in Round 12 and sixth in Round 13 of the IZOD IndyCar Series at the Honda Indy Toronto on the Streets of Toronto.

The Honda Indy Toronto marked the second of three doubleheaders on the 2013 IZOD IndyCar Series schedule, where entrants raced in a pair of 85-lap races Saturday, July 13 and Sunday, July 14 on the 1.75-mile temporary street circuit.

Charlie Kimball, Novo Nordisk Chip Ganassi Racing Honda

Photo by: Chris Jones

Kimball quickly showed his strength on the 11-turn street circuit and battled around cars to move a total of four positions within the first 13 laps. As cars began to take to pit lane for their first stops of the race, Kimball led a total of two laps which marked the third time he has led laps on a street/road course and the fifth time he has led laps in his IZOD IndyCar Series career.

On lap 32, the No. 83 would come in for its first pit stop from first position to take alternate tires, fuel and a tire pressure adjustment to the front and rear of the car. As he exited the pits, Charlie and his crew found the stop to be of good timing as they came out in seventh position.

The Novo Nordisk Chip Ganassi Racing team spent the majority of the 85-lap race battling inside the top-10 with their tire strategy showing its benefit until the NovoRapid FlexTouch car was spun by the No. 19 into the turn five tire barrier, which caused a multi-car incident on lap 64.

Immediately following, Kimball reported damage to the rear wing and was called to pit lane for the change. Two laps later the car returned for its fourth and final pit stop from 20th for fresh tires and exited pit lane from the same position.

As Kimball began to track down the No. 55 for position, a flat right-rear tire caused him to pull into the runoff and retire from the race for his first DNF of the 2013 season in 21st position.

With the result in Round 12, Kimball held on to 12th position in the IZOD IndyCar Series point standings with 244 markers, -140 points behind leader Helio Castroneves.

Race 2 – Sunday, July 14

Starting the 85-lap race from 15th position on the inside of row 8, the Novo Nordisk Chip Ganassi team would take what worked to their benefit in the first race and put a similar strategy to use in the second leg of the doubleheader weekend.

As alternate tires had proven to fall off quickly throughout Race 1, the Novo Nordisk Chip Ganassi Racing team worked their tire strategy to spend the initial portion of the race on primary tires for longer stints and conserve a fresh set of alternate tires for a short stint near the end of the race in a two-stop strategy.

With a caution free first half of the event, Kimball spent the initial stages of the race holding position near the middle of the field. As cars began to cycle through pit, the No. 83 ran as high as third on lap 30 until called to pit lane for its own stop and for primary tires.

Shortly after the pit stop, the No. 83 crew reported to Kimball that he was posting good lap times as he worked through the field and posted his fastest run of the race on lap 40.

Following the halfway mark of the 85-lap race, cars began to cycle through the pit for their second round of stops and the NovoRapid FlexTouch car rolled to fourth position before its making second and final stop on lap 62 for its first set of alternate tires. While exiting pit lane in 10th, the course went yellow on lap 65 and Kimball would spend the final 23 laps battling inside the top-10.

With four laps remaining, Kimball sat in ninth position until a caution for a multi-car incident on lap 84. With the incident falling in front of the No. 83, Kimball effectively worked his way through the debris to take the car to sixth position on the final lap to score his sixth top-10 of the season.

With the result in Round 13, Kimball holds 11th in the IZOD IndyCar Series point standings with 272 markers, -153 points behind leader Helio Castroneves.

Honda is second in the manufacturer point standings with 96 points, trailing Chevrolet with 99.

Up next, Novo Nordisk Chip Ganassi Racing will compete in Round 14 of the IZOD IndyCar Series with the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio from Lexington, Ohio on Sunday, August 4 (3:00pm ET NBC Sports Network).

NNCGR