Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing heads to Sao Paulo

Finding familiarity in an unfamiliar place

Josef Newgarden, Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing Honda

Photo by: xpb.cc

Rookie Josef Newgarden heads to the Itaipava Sao Paulo Indy 300 this weekend for his first IZOD IndyCar Series race outside of the U.S., and the 21-year-old driver is looking forward to the Brazilian street course because of the similarities it has with another international circuit at which he does have experience: the famed Autodromo Nazionale Monza in Monza, Italy.

“The circuit in Sao Paulo reminds me of Monza with the way the straights work,” Newgarden said. “I thought Monza was a great track, so I’m really excited to get to Brazil.”

With three events in the 2012 IZOD IndyCar series under his belt, Newgarden and the Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing team find themselves in 22nd position in driver point standings. Newgarden started on the outside of the front row in the series’ last race in the Streets of Long Beach, Calif., but had contact with driver Dario Franchitti on the first turn of the first lap that ended his day.

“I’ve been thinking about Brazil since the day after the race in Long Beach,” Newgarden said. “The package that we’ve had at other street races this year is going to work well in Brazil.”

Newgarden is looking forward to tackling the 11-turn temporary street circuit in his No. 67 Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing Dallara/Honda/Firestone car.

“With the long straights we’ll see high speeds from some drivers, and there are big braking zones,” Newgarden said. “It’s certainly something that suits my driving style.”