DETROIT, June 3, 2018 /PRNewswire-HISPANIC PR WIRE/ — For the second consecutive year, Honda drivers dominated the opening round of the Dual in Detroit doubleheader Verizon IndyCar Series weekend, leading all 70 laps, with Scott Dixon spearheading a Honda sweep of the top six finishing positions.

Starting from the pole, Marco Andretti led until the first round of scheduled pit stops was completed.  Ryan Hunter-Reay, running a three pit-stop, “out of sequence” strategy, assumed the lead.  Then, taking control in the second half of the 70-lap contest, Dixon maintained a narrow, but consistent margin over his pursuers in his Chip Ganassi Racing Honda for the remainder of the day.

Winner of both races in 2017, Graham Rahal mounted a challenge for the lead though Lap 46, when he crashed without injury in Turn 13 to end his race.  Hunter-Reay then moved to second, while his Andretti Autosport teammates, Andretti and Alexander Rossi, battled over the final podium spot, with Rossi taking the position for the final time on Lap 70.

The win is the first for Dixon this season, and his 42^nd career Indy car victory, highest among active drivers.  Hunter-Reay’s second-place result equals his best of 2018 – scored at Barber Motorsports Park – while Rossi takes over the Drivers’ Championship lead with his third-place finish.  Heading into tomorrow’s race, Rossi has 276 points to 272 for Dixon.

Following the lead trio to the checkers was Andretti, with Takuma Sato and Ed Jones rounding out the top six for Honda.  Activities continue Sunday in Detroit with the second of this weekend’s two 70-lap Verizon IndyCar Series races.  The eighth round of the 2018 championship begins at 3:30 p.m. EDT, with live television coverage on ABC.

Scott Dixon (Chip Ganassi Racing Honda) Started second, finished first, his 42^nd career Indy car victory and first win of 2018: “It’s big. It’s nice to get that first win out of the way. Getting around Marco [Andretti] on that first stop, that was big, and my pit stops were fantastic. We came up a little short in the last few races, but to bounce back last week … it’s always good to be back in the winner’s circle.”

Ryan Hunter-Reay (Andretti Autosport Honda) Started fifth, finished second: “Man, it was a physical race out there today. We had good strategy and a good race car. I had good pace though Turns 1-2-3-4 and thought that might be my chance if he [Dixon] made a mistake, but that’s Scott Dixon.  We just came up a little bit short on this one. We’re going to put our best foot forward tomorrow.”

Art St. Cyr (president, Honda Performance Development) on today’s Honda victory in Detroit: “What a great day for HPD today.  To rebound from disappointing Indianapolis 500 last week to sweep the top six in IndyCar, go 1-2 in the GTD class in the IMSA race, plus second and third in the prototype class, should be reason for all HPD associates to be proud.  Fortunately, with this format, we get to come back and try to do it all again tomorrow!  Congratulations to everyone connected with our racing programs.”

Photo – https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/700289/Honda_Racing_HPD_Scott_Dixon.jpg

SOURCE Honda Racing/HPD

DETROIT, June 3, 2018 /PRNewswire-HISPANIC PR WIRE/ — The four Acura entries in this weekend’s Detroit Grand Prix Presented by Lear completed a nearly perfect set of results in today’s 100-minute race, with a 1-2 result for the Acura NSX GT3 and Meyer Shank Racing in the GTD class, and a 2-3 finish for Acura Team Penske and the ARX-05 prototype.

Meyer Shank Racing GTD

In GTD, Katherine Legge and Meyer Shank Racing successfully repeated their class win here from one year ago, but with Mario Farnbacher joining the lineup in the #86 Acura NSX GT3.  Starting second, Legge challenged the leading Lamborghini of Bryan Sellers throughout the first 40 minutes.  Meanwhile, Justin Marks ran a close third in the #93 MSR Acura.

At the end of her stint, in the only scheduled pit stop for the GTD cars, the MSR team repeated its successful tactic from 2017 and only changed the left-side tires on both Acuras, putting them first and second, with Farnbacher now leading in the #86 and Lawson Aschenbach second in the #93 NSX GT3.

From there, the MSR Acura pair controlled the pace of the race, with Farnbacher pulling out to a nine second victory and Aschenbach completing the first-ever 1-2 result for Meyer Shank Racing.  The win moves Legge, second in the GTD Drivers’ Championship, to within three points of leader Sellers; and Acura to within nine points of the Manufacturers’ Championship lead.

Acura Team Penske Prototype

Starting second, Acura Team Penske’s Juan Pablo Montoya moved into the lead after only four laps in his #6 Acura ARX-05, with teammate Helio Castoneves running second in the sister #7 Acura.  An early yellow flag for debris on Lap 11, the only caution flag of the day, resulted in both Acura Team Penske prototypes electing to make early pit stops.

On the Lap 15 restart, contact between multiple cars delayed the #6 car, now with Dane Cameron driving, and allowed Ricky Taylor in the #7 to pass.  The pair ran fifth and sixth until others made their scheduled initial stops, and were running second and third after the final round of stops.  Taylor reduced a seven-second lead for the Action Express Cadillac of Felipe Nasr to just over a second, but was unable to attempt a pass for the lead in the closing laps.

Next

From the shortest race on the schedule, the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship moves on to one of the longest:  the Sahlen’s Six Hours of the Glen, July 1 at Watkins Glen International Raceway in upstate New York.

Video recaps from this weekend’s Acura racing activities in Detroit, as well as action from the companion Honda teams in the Verizon IndyCar Series doubleheader race weekend, will be posted on the “Honda Racing/HPD” YouTube channel.  Produced by the Carolinas Production Group, the video packages can be found in the 2017 HPD Trackside Video Playlist at: https://www.youtube.com/HondaRacingHPDTV.

Quotes

Art St. Cyr (President, Honda Performance Development) on today’s race: “What a great day for HPD today, a nearly perfect day for both Acura and Honda.  To rebound from a disappointing Indianapolis 500 last week to sweep the top six in IndyCar, go 1-2 in the GTD class in the IMSA race, plus second and third in the prototype class, should be ample reason for all HPD associates to be proud.  Congratulations to everyone connected with our racing programs.”

Katherine Legge (driver, #86 Meyer Shank Racing Acura NSX GT3) Finished first in GTD, second consecutive win in Detroit and third Acura career win:  “I’m super pumped with our results today! It was the best possible outcome. I am over the moon happy. Now, we are right there with [the leaders] in the championship, so we have to just move on to the next race to continue the fight. It’s for the championship, so we have a different outlook and hopefully we can keep racing and moving forward.”

Mario Farnbacher (driver, #86 Meyer Shank Racing Acura NSX GT3) Finished first in GTD:  “First, I have to thank Mike [Shank] and the team for bringing me in to race this weekend and trusting me. My main job was to keep this car competitive and most importantly to save fuel during the race. Fuel saving is not always easy, but I could be consistent and bring it home! I am just so thankful the team thought of me for this spot. I hope Alvaro [Parente, regular co-driver for the #86] and Kat [Legge] continue this good run through the rest of the season.”

Ricky Taylor (driver, #7 Acura Team Penske ARX-05) Finished second overall and in prototype: “We were definitely closing [on the leader] in those final few laps, but as everyone knows, it’s very difficult to pass here.  So, I’m not 100 per cent sure if we would have had enough [to pass] even if the race had been a little bit longer.  Our Acura is definitely fast, but there are still a few areas where we need to improve, and we’ll work on those in the lead up to [the next race at] Watkins Glen.”

Photo – https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/700288/Acura_Motorsports_Meyer_Shank_Racing.jpg

SOURCE Acura Motorsports

TORRANCE, Calif., June 1, 2018 /PRNewswire-HISPANIC PR WIRE/ —

“We’re pleased with the consistent results across our entire lineup of passenger cars and light trucks for both the Honda and Acura brands, and remain optimistic about the year ahead,” said Henio Arcangeli Jr., senior vice president of the Automobile Division & general manager of Honda sales. “The all-new 2019 Acura RDX arrives in dealer showrooms today as the first in a new generation of Acura products. With sales of more than 50,000 units in each of the last three years, RDX remains one of the best-selling vehicles in the luxury crossover segment and we’re confident this all-new model will further build upon that success.”

Photo – https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/699838/American_Honda_Motor_Co_Inc_2018_Honda_CR_V.jpg
Logo – https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/477245/HONDALOGO_Logo.jpg  
PDF – https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/699878/Honda_May_2018_Sales_Release_FINAL_6_1_18.pdf

SOURCE American Honda Motor Co., Inc.

IRVINE, California, June 1, 2018 /PRNewswire-HISPANIC PR WIRE/ — Mazda North American Operations (MNAO) today reported total May U.S. sales of 29,980 vehicles, representing an increase of 15.1 percent versus May of last year. Year-to-date (YTD) sales through May are up 14.9 percent versus last year, with 137,031 vehicles sold. With 26 selling days in May 2018, versus 25 the year prior, the company posted an increase of 10.7 percent on a Daily Selling Rate (DSR) basis.

Key May sales notes:

• Mazda6 led the charge, posting a sales increase of 63.8 percent year-over-year (YOY), with 4,437 vehicles sold in the month of May.This increase was led by the launch of the new 2018 Mazda6, which is now available in more trim options than before, including the introduction of a Signature trim level, which had previously only been available on the CX-9.
• Mazda CX-5, Mazda’s award-winning crossover SUV, returned to record-breaking sales, posting its best-ever May sales of 14,173 vehicles, marking an increase of 19.9 percent YOY. Sales of the Mazda CX-5 are up 43.7 percent YTD.
• Mazda CX-3 posted its best-ever sales this month, with 1,823 vehicles sold in May, marking an increase of 18.6 percent YOY. Sales of Mazda CX-3 are up 14.0 percent YTD.
• Mazda’s seven-passenger crossover SUV, Mazda CX-9, had a near-record month, finishing up 26.6 percent YOY, with 2,509 vehicles sold. Sales of the Mazda CX-9 are up 18.4 percent YTD.
• Every model in the CX-line posted sales gains in the month of May. Total sales of the CX-line, including the CX-3, CX-5 and CX-9, where up 20.6 percent over May of last year, with 18,505 vehicles sold.
• Mazda reported an all-time high for Certified Pre-Owned (CPO) sales, with 4,823 CPO vehicles sold in May, marking an increase of 21.0 percent YOY.

Mazda Motor de Mexico (MMdM) reported May sales of 4,308 vehicles, up 2.4 percent versus May of last year.

Mazda North American Operations is headquartered in Irvine, California, and oversees the sales, marketing, parts and customer service support of Mazda vehicles in the United States and Mexico through nearly 700 dealers. Operations in Mexico are managed by Mazda Motor de Mexico in Mexico City. For more information on Mazda vehicles, including photography and B-roll, please visit the online Mazda media center at InsideMazda.MazdaUSA.com/Newsroom.

Logo – https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/53154/mazda_north_american_operations_logo.jpg

SOURCE Mazda North American Operations