INDYCAR's "Fast Six" is a report derived from all things found online about Verizon IndyCar Series racing, its drivers and people. We seek and find pics and quips as INDYCAR drivers live their extraordinary lives and put the evidence on Twitter, Instagram and more. Check back regularly when we post the latest.
RACING INTO RAW
She’s not practicing body slams and piledrivers yet, but Pippa Mann is the newest member of Titus O’Neil’s Titus Worldwide, according to the WWE’s Twitter feed. She’s in good company. LL Cool J, Anthony Bourdain and Vince Carter are also signed on.
Looks like Mann added her name to the list when the WWE was in Indianapolis this week. As driver of the pink Susan G. Komen Indy car in the Indianapolis 500 for Dale Coyne Racing, she accepted an invitation to attend.
PATRIOT PRIDE
Simon Pagenaud’s burgeoning friendship with injured New England Patriots receiver Julian Edelman got the Team Penske driver in a bit of hot water with the fans of other NFL franchises.
Seems Pagenaud, who met Edelman at this year's ESPYs in Los Angeles, joined with Andretti Herta Autosport with Curb-Agajanian driver Alexander Rossi, who met Edelman at the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach, to send the NFL star a signed Indy 500 helmet when they heard about his knee injury. Edelman returned the favor with signed jerseys, adding “Tough times don’t last. Tough people do” to his message.
However, when Pagenaud posted a picture showing him holding Edelman’s jersey on his social accounts, NFL fans threw some yellow flags. They wanted the 2016 Verizon IndyCar Series champion to support their favorite teams and not the Patriots. Regardless, we hope to see Edelman back in the INDYCAR paddock next year.
LOOK, CHAMP, NO BRAKES!
The 2018 Indy car keeps popping up at tracks around the country and this week’s test at Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin, gave us a giggle-worthy social media exchange between Spencer Pigot, who was testing the car for Ed Carpenter Racing, and new champion Josef Newgarden of Team Penske, who was not at the test.
When Newgarden asked via Twitter “for a friend” about the “kink,” Road America’s fastest corner, Pigot hilariously suggested other drivers should slow down rather than speed through it flat out.
TALKING TURKEY
James Hinchcliffe ushered in the holiday season this week when the Schmidt Peterson Motorsports driver and girlfriend Becky Dalton celebrated Canadian Thanksgiving, complete with a turkey they apparently roasted.
LOVE FOR NORCAL
When the North Bay wildfires threatened the Sonoma Raceway area and the track itself, drivers turned to social media to express their concern. Word is that the track, its flock of sheep and Andretti Winery were spared, but the INDYCAR community is clearly ready to support their California friends.
BIRTHDAY FLASHBACK
Chip Ganassi Racing’s Scott Dixon gave us a trip in the way-back machine this week, when he wished his wife, Emma, a happy birthday.