Josef Newgarden is taken into account one of many faces of the IndyAutomobile circuit. Since his professional debut in 2012—an 11th place end on the Honda Grand Prix—the 32-year-old has developed into one of many racing league’s most constant drivers. In addition to being a two-time IndyAutomobile Series champion, Newgarden’s 26 wins ranks him third amongst present drivers.
The Tennessee native additionally brings the muscle every weekend to the NTT IndyAutomobile circuit, growing a physique equally ready to be in entrance of the digicam for a health journal picture shoot as it’s behind the wheel of a twin-turbo machine maneuvering in extra of 230 mph. And to ensure that Newgarden to lastly develop a Winning Strategy to overcome his biggest racing problem—breaking his Indy 500 hunch, it could take a power and ability combo. So far, in 11 makes an attempt at making it to the Brickyard’s winner’s circle, Newgarden has come up brief every race, his greatest being a third-place end in 2016.
This yr’s leadup to the game’s signature occasion on May 28 has taken a artistic flip, as race followers have been capable of get behind the scenes glimpses of Newgarden and different drivers on the brand new CW present “100 Days to Indy.” The high-speed docuseries provides viewers an off the monitor model of Newgarden, together with parts of his off-the-charts exercise routine in addition to his quirky, off the cuff YouTube comedy skits he created with Penske teammate Scott McLaughlin—“Bus Bros”— which exhibits a lighter facet of the oftentimes hectic weekly Indy grind.
And as IndyAutomobile’s reputation continues to develop—NBC reported that final yr was its most-watched season since 2016—it’s turning into extra crucial for IndyAutomobile to showcase its superstars. Newgarden, as one among its auto racing amabassadors, believes exhibits like “100 Days” cannot solely assist catapult IndyAutomobile again to the highest tier of general sports activities viewership, however its superstars as properly.
“IndyCar to me just really stands out as the most competitive product right now,” Newgarden says, “so I know all these personalities, and how interesting everybody’s stories are. I don’t think everybody in the world really knows about them, and that’s the beauty of “100 Days to Indy”: You’re going to get an inside look into a number of the totally different personalities and skills who’re which can be within the sport, not simply the drivers, however a number of the group members.”
One of the tales features a glimpse of the 6’, 180-pound weightroom warrior’s exercise routine, which can look as a lot CrossFit than for a motorsports athlete seeking to construct a greater conditioning base to assist construct endurance because the season progresses. His match body hardly goes unnoticed amongst different drivers—with one fellow driver dropping a line through the collection that Newgarden ought to take into consideration shedding pounds due to “too much muscle.” But thus far, you possibly can’t argue the outcomes, on the monitor or the health club, as Newgarden’s heavy reliance on rowing and the ski erg helps him dominate on the monitor.
“I think the best training you can do is really, you know, picking up a concept to machine you know, if you go rowing or you jump on a skier,” Newgarden says. “Those are the best exercises because those are going to be muscular dominant and also have a huge cardio component to it. So you can really kind of train both sides of the world, which is I think, exactly what you find in an IndyCar, you know, it’s physically demanding, it’s high G loading is very heavy steering.”
Consistency and the aggressive problem is what fuels Newgarden, who grew up taking part in basketball. In addition to being a two-time IndyAutomobile champion, his athleticism has gotten him invitations to take part in a variety of occasions, together with as a star athlete to take part within the NFL Combine, a visitor member of the Indiana Pacers “Power Pack” halftime trampoline slam dunk crew, in addition to a 2016 look on tv’s “American Ninja Warrior,” together with fellow Indy drivers Helio Castroneves and Tony Kanaan.
Newgarden’s development as an athlete is a Winning Strategy of getting enjoyable with the method, whereas staying laser centered all through the journey.
“My philosophy has always been to be well rounded,” Newgarden says. “I would like to be able to do whatever task anyone wants me to do. And so that means having great strength, having great strength, endurance and having good cardio. So whether they want me to run a marathon, triathlon or lift 225 over my head, I want to be able to do all of those things. Focusing on being well rounded is has really helped me inside the car.”
Personally, I’m not an enormous social media fan, nevertheless it’s a essential evil on this medium all of us work in. It’s how you discover out about totally different manufacturers and personalities that you simply both like or dislike—it’s just about the primary factor that folks undergo. So it’s completely a necessity for those who’re going to showcase what your model, character, or assist drive curiosity to your sport,
Unfortunately, it’s an enormous a part of it, so we attempt to embrace it in a enjoyable manner. This was positively a enjoyable strategy to change the tempo of the monotonous depth that racing is—and I really like that facet of it, that’s, that’s why I’m in it. But folks additionally need to see the opposite facet of it, you understand, they only need to see you understand, what you’re like exterior of that intense surroundings. And that’s what we’ve tried to do. Me and my teammate Scott McLaughlin made this YouTube present known as Bus Bros. It was actually like a joke—even the title of the present was a joke. And it’s in some way caught on. People thought it was actually entertaining and it grew to become a cult following. And we simply did it as amusing.
Racing’s very severe. We present as much as the race weekend and everybody’s very locked in on the method of observe qualifying. Leading up from Friday, Saturday, Sunday, it’s an extended drag and it’s very intense. And we simply wished to interrupt it up slightly bit, have some enjoyable throughout the weekend, do one thing lighthearted that was not too severe. And then you understand, it ended up catching on and we simply have been doing it now for the final yr or so. It’s fairly silly—they showcased in on the primary episode of the present, folks can go discover it on the Internet.
Nothing’s actually scripted. Scott likes to decorate up in inflatables, and we go round on the streets and simply interview random followers on a regular basis. People appear to like that. It’s simply type of diving into the enjoyable facet of a race weekend
2. Treat Every Decision Like a Game-Changing Decision
I at all times inform folks that you simply make 1,000 choices in a race. But for those who make one flawed determination, your race day will be over and ruined. You can take a possible profitable outcome and perhaps you end prime 5. So you actually can’t have one mistake, and that’s not simply from the motive force standpoint, it’s from all people. It actually is a group sport.
I do know that by way of simply having been part of it for thus a few years, whether or not it’s technique, it’s pitstops, it’s automotive prep. It all all of it issues —you possibly can’t have one factor that goes flawed. It can’t simply be me driving the automotive completely on the day—despite the fact that I’ve to try this—all of us must execute. So it’s over 1000 choices, if you’ll, and one among them can’t go flawed on race day. So the main focus and the execution needs to be fairly flawless.
You [need a] properly prepped surroundings. You need to be as bodily ready so as to be as mentally ready—these go hand in hand. When you’re constructed to the very best skill you could, I feel it provides you a greater likelihood to win races extra usually.
There’s sometimes a second within the race the place it’s make or break, the place perhaps you didn’t begin first—you began 10th. And you got here in with a sure technique after which impulsively the technique flips due to an unexpected yellow, and it jumbles up the sphere. You can go a technique or change of technique. There’s at all times like a make or break second in there the place it’s a must to actually capitalize on it. Maybe it’s an in lap. Maybe it’s an out lap or a selected pitstop. It’s like there’s a second the place the flip of the technique goes to be initiated proper now and also you’ve bought to nail that second. And once you do, it may result in you understand, profitable the race from perhaps beginning tenth or one thing. We’ve had a ton of these days.
3. Enjoy the Process, No Matter the Results
It’s very true. There’s a number of occasions the place, you understand, issues don’t work out, and perhaps they need to have. Everybody might not know the entire story. Like, we in all probability ought to’ve gained the race on at the present time for these causes or due to one other set of causes, it didn’t work out.
I feel again on these on these days rather a lot and I come again to that I simply love the method of racing. I actually like it.
So sure, despite the fact that it hasn’t labored out at Indy, I get pleasure from going and diving again into the method each single yr, simply attempting to excellent it slightly bit extra. There’s a component of luck and timing that naturally has to return with you and in racing—it’s simply a part of it, particularly in an occasion like Indianapolis. I feel that’s it’s extra crucial at an occasion like that than say, your customary race. But no matter the way it works out, it’s enjoyable to dive again into the method and attempt to you understand, construct a greater weapon to battle with yearly.
There’s rather more similarities in group sports activities and Indy automotive than you’ll understand. I didn’t know that till I actually bought to the highest degree of motorsports. I used to be a standard suburbs rising up simply exterior of Nashville. Typically in these environments you get into your stick and ball sports activities—baseball, basketball, soccer, hockey—and there’s a ton of similarities.
I feel the team-building facet of any sport is so relevant to racing. It’s the very same factor. It doesn’t matter what place you’re in a racing group, each place actually issues. It takes all people pulling collectively and doing an incredible job on the day to appreciate victory. And so that you begin constructing these group dynamics by which you perceive learn how to work folks and maximize not solely your self however maximize the people round you. I feel that’s in all probability one of the vital crucial ability units you could study to achieve success in a sporting surroundings. And you study that very early in stick and ball sports activities. You’re at the least uncovered to what that appears like or what challenges is perhaps with attempting to work together with teammates. And you may have to have the ability to apply that, even excel at that once you’re at knowledgeable degree in motorsports.
Preparation is one thing that’s been instilled in me. I’ve actually realized simply by being within the surroundings and from a number of the people that I’ve been capable of work with, that you simply simply it doesn’t matter how a lot expertise you may have, you understand you possibly can’t complement preparation. It sounds slightly bit tacky and foolish nevertheless it’s so true. I feel somebody who’s tremendous gifted that doesn’t have the arduous work will be beat by somebody who’s not very gifted however works loopy arduous. But once you take somebody who has a expertise and you place the work ethic and the arduous work behind it, it’s very, very tough to beat that mixture.
So for those who’re fortunate sufficient to have a little bit of expertise and no matter your chosen sport is, you understand, then then you definitely actually ought to seize it and run with it and profit from it.
It’s a really private reply, what could also be true for me may not be true for everybody. I feel you’ve bought to search out no matter that steadiness is that works for you as a person. You’re the important thing to that. Everybody’s gonna have a distinct reply from me.
Personally, I’m very a lot an introvert, and it may be a really stressing surroundings once you present as much as the racetrack simply because there’s a number of interplay. There’s a number of interplay that I can’t keep away from particularly being the motive force. Interaction as type of the face of the group, one of many faces of the game, in a number of methods you may have companions, followers, all kinds of people in search of time. And so, as an introvert and going by way of all that on a race weekend, I’ve bought to personally decompress, simply to reset myself. I can drain my power tank actually simply. I understand how inclined I’m to it.
SO for me, it’s. not essentially getting away from racing, I simply want private time. I don’t do something too loopy. I’m a reasonably regular man, in all probability boring exterior of racing. I like primary stuff. I really like coaching. I’m aggressive by nature, so if I’m competing in racing, I’ve bought to be doing one thing crammed with competitors once I’m away from the racetrack. That’s simply my MO, so coaching has truly been type of a superb vice for me once I don’t have that outlet to go racing. That’s type of the place I pour my time and power into.
