Ed Carpenter Racing

United States Ed Carpenter Racing
Founded 2012
Team principal(s) Ed Carpenter
Former series IndyCar Series
Noted drivers Ed Carpenter (6 races)
Mike Conway (12 races)
J. R. Hildebrand (Indy 500)
Folded 2014

Ed Carpenter Racing was an American racing team in the IndyCar Series. The team was owned by driver Ed Carpenter, who also drives for the team. ECR was the only team in IndyCar to be run by an owner/driver.[1][2] The team was based in Indianapolis, Indiana.[3]

History

After spending five seasons with Vision Racing, and the 2011 IndyCar Series season with Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing,[4] on November 2, 2011, Ed Carpenter announced the creation of Ed Carpenter Racing, which ran its first season in 2012 with sponsorship by Fuzzy's Premium Vodka[5] for three seasons.[6] Among the reasons for the team's creation was concerns surrounding the departure of Sarah Fisher Racing's sponsor Dollar General.[3] IRL founder and Carpenter's stepfather Tony George also became an owner,[5] along with former golfer Fuzzy Zoeller.[7] American Le Mans Series team owner and former Penske Racing member Derrick Walker was hired as general manager;[8] Tim Broyles and Bret Schmitt were hired as team manager and crew chief, respectively.[1]

On February 13, 2012, it was confirmed that the team will run with engines from Chevrolet.[9] Carpenter stated that he was intending to run a full season, unlike in previous seasons, where he ran the ovals,[7] and had also decided to drive with #20, the number he drove with during his tenure at Vision Racing.[4] The team claimed its first victory with Carpenter winning the season-ending MAVTV 500 at Auto Club Speedway,[1] and ECR became the only one-driver team to win a race in 2012.[10] In 2013, Walker left for a position with IndyCar.[11] Eventually, Carpenter scored the pole position for the Indianapolis 500.[12] He finished the season sixteenth in points, with a best result of second at the final race at Auto Club Speedway.

For the 2014 season, Carpenter competed in the oval races on the calendar, while Mike Conway competed for the team on road and street courses.[13] On March 20, J. R. Hildebrand was hired to run the 2014 Indianapolis 500 with the team in the No. 21.[14] The move to a shared drive paid off well for the team early in the year, with Conway winning the 40th Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach, and Carpenter winning the Indy 500 pole for the second consecutive year. Carpenter's four lap average of 231.067 mph was the first Indy pole-claiming run in excess of 230 mph for 11 years.[15] Unfortunately, he was involved in a crash with James Hinchcliffe on a late restart, finishing 27th. Later in the season, Carpenter won the Firestone 600 at Texas Motor Speedway, his first win since the 2012 triumph at Fontana.

On August 16, 2014, Carpenter announced the team would merge with Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing for the 2015 season, becoming CFH Racing.[16]

Racing results

Complete IndyCar Series results

(key)

Year Chassis Engine Drivers No. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19
2012 Dallara DW12 Chevrolet IndyCar V6t STP ALA LBH SAO INDY DET TEX MIL IOW TOR EDM MDO SNM BAL FON
United States Ed Carpenter 20 18 22 14 21 21 12 12 8 8 18 22 22 20 25 1*
2013 Dallara DW12 Chevrolet IndyCar V6t STP ALA LBH SAO INDY DET TXS MIL IOW POC TOR MDO SNM BAL HOU FON
United States Ed Carpenter 20 14 22 18 23 10* 18 15 4 14 4 9 13 22 20 19 14 23 22 2
2014 Dallara DW12 Chevrolet IndyCar V6t STP LBH ALA IMS INDY DET TXS HOU POC IOW TOR MDO MIL SNM FON
United Kingdom Mike Conway 20 16 1 14 19 21 11 17 13 15 1 13 14
United States Ed Carpenter 27 1 13 5 9 3
United States J. R. Hildebrand 21 10

Wins

Year Date Race Driver
1 2012 September 15 MAVTV 500 IndyCar World Championships United States Ed Carpenter
2 2014 April 13 Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach United Kingdom Mike Conway
3 2014 June 7 Firestone 600 United States Ed Carpenter
4 2014 July 20 Honda Indy Toronto United Kingdom Mike Conway

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Blattler, Tom (March 20, 2013). "ECR Set For 2013 Debut, Fuzzy's Vodka Team Ready For St. Pete Streets". Ed Carpenter Racing. Retrieved November 10, 2013.
  2. ↑ Malsher, David (September 15, 2013). "Ed Carpenter on self-improvement, team expansion and the IndyCar schedule". Racer. Retrieved November 18, 2013.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Hier, Daryle (November 3, 2011). "Ed Carpenter Starts His Own Team - a Fan’s Review". Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved November 10, 2013.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Ed Carpenter forms own IndyCar team for 2012". Autoweek. November 2, 2011. Retrieved November 10, 2013.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 "Ed Carpenter Racing launched for 2012 IndyCar season". Racer. November 2, 2011. Retrieved November 10, 2013.
  6. ↑ Associated Press (November 2, 2011). "IndyCar's Ed Carpenter to start own team". WTOP-FM. Retrieved November 10, 2013.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 O'Leary, Jamie (November 3, 2011). "Ed Carpenter sets up IndyCar team and plans full 2012 campaign". Autosport. Retrieved November 10, 2013.
  8. ↑ Proffit, Anne (November 5, 2011). "Derrick Walker To Manage Ed Carpenter Racing". Motor Authority. Retrieved November 10, 2013.
  9. ↑ Associated Press (February 13, 2012). "Ed Carpenter signs with Chevrolet for 2012 season". ESPN. Retrieved November 10, 2013.
  10. ↑ Tuttle, Tim. "Ed Carpenter's tenacity pays off with season-ending win at Fontana". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved November 10, 2013.
  11. ↑ Weaver, Matt (September 17, 2013). "Ed Carpenter: Villains and rivalries go against the IndyCar culture". SB Nation. Retrieved November 10, 2013.
  12. ↑ "Carpenter slays IndyCar giants to win 500 pole". Reuters. May 18, 2013. Retrieved November 10, 2013.
  13. ↑ Lewandowski, Dave (November 15, 2013). "Conway joins Carpenter team for roads/streets". IndyCar Series (IndyCar). Retrieved November 15, 2013.
  14. ↑ IndyCar (March 20, 2014). "Hildebrand To Compete In '500'". Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Retrieved March 20, 2014.
  15. ↑ Oreovicz, John (May 21, 2014). "Speeds up, anxiety high at Indy". ESPN. Retrieved July 16, 2014.
  16. ↑ DiZinno, Tony (August 16, 2014). "UPDATED: Carpenter, SFHR IndyCar squads to merge, become CFH Racing". NBC Sports. Retrieved September 17, 2014.

External links