This year marks the 30th Anniversary of the Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix being first held at the Raceway at Belle Isle in 1992. Prior to Belle Isle, the NTT INDYCAR Series competed on the streets of downtown Detroit from 1989 to 1991. The downtown race circuit hosted Formula 1 races from 1982 through 1988. This year also marks the final Indy car race at Belle Isle because next year the roar of Indy car engines will permeate downtown Detroit.
Dalton Kellett - No. 4 K-Line Insulators USA Chevrolet
"It's a quick turn-around from the Month of May to racing on the streets of Belle Isle. I'm really
excited for this one. Driving the IndyCar on the street circuits is exhilarating and I think the racing will be great for the fans. It's a challenging course with a surface that grips up well and a mix of fast and tight corners. Our street course package has been strong, so we're looking to do it justice for this track's swan song, as we will move downtown for 2023. The No. 4 K-Line crew is ready to attack the rest of the season!"
Kellett is donating $3,800 based on his merchandise sales in May to the families of the victims in the mass shooting in Uvalde, Texas. The sales were bolstered by fans who wanted to support the cause. His sponsor K-Line Insulators USA is matching his donation of $3,800 as is AJ Foyt Racing, bringing the total to $11,400. The donation to the Texas Elementary School Shooting Victims Fund organized by Victims First are being made through gofundme.com.
Kellett Fast Facts: Age 28…Born in Toronto, Canada and lives in Indianapolis…Became engaged to Nicole Westra and they plan to wed on New Year's Eve...Graduated from Queens University with a degree in Engineering Physics…Brand spokesman for Ten80 Education’s National STEM League…Enjoys rock climbing, backcountry skiing, camping, playing guitar, cooking and golf. For the technically curious, Kellett posts TikTok videos (@dalton_kellett) about the race car labeled "Indy Mondays" with subjects ranging from the steering wheel to the weight jacker to cold tires.
Tatiana Calderón - No. 11 ROKiT Chevrolet
"It's been a few weeks since I was in the car so I'm definitely looking forward to discovering a new city, a new track --another street circuit. I want to keep the momentum that we had in the Indy GP because I felt great with the car. Obviously, the characteristics of the track here are very different as well as the tires a little bit, so I think that can suit us better this weekend. I am getting more comfortable with the street circuit type of tires so yeah, a lot of things to test in free practice, get my references with the track, but I'm sure it will be ready to start from a better baseline. Also, I've been with the team to the simulators, I think hopefully that will speed up things, particularly for the first session that we can get up to speed quicker. Really looking forward to a new challenge."
Calderón Fast Facts: Age 29...Born in Bogota, Colombia and now living in Miami...Began racing karts at age 9 and has competed in Formula 2, Renault Series Formula V8 3.5 (first female on podium in Bahrein-2017), GP3, European Formula 3, British Formula 3 Series (first female on podium)...Test driver for the Alfa Romeo Formula 1 team for past four years...Enjoys tennis, water skiing and drinking coffee.
Kyle Kirkwood - No. 14 ROKiT Chevrolet
"After a pretty successful Indy 500 gaining 11 positions this past weekend I look forward to
getting back on track at Detroit in the No. 14 ROKiT Chevrolet. Street courses have been a strong suit for us and out of all the street courses I've competed on in the past, Detroit has been my most successful with the double win in Indy Lights last year. We are constantly progressing our car and I’m really looking forward to this weekend with a couple new tools in our pocket."
Kirkwood Fast Facts: Age 23...Born in West Palm Beach, and lives in Jupiter, Florida... Only driver to win championships in all three divisions of the Road to Indy ladder system...Began racing karts at age 5...Won the 2018 Cooper Tires USF2000 title (12 wins in 14 races) and won 15 of 17 races to claim the F3 Americas Championship...Won the 2019 Indy Pro 2000 Championship Presented by Cooper Tires with nine victories and five poles in 16 races (RP Motorsports)...Won 2021 Indy Lights title (2020 season canceled due to pandemic) with 10 victories, seven poles in 20 races. Enjoys surfing, deep-sea fishing, diving and golf.
Double Duty: Kyle Kirkwood will be competing in Saturday's Chevrolet Sports Car Classic for Vasser Sullivan in addition to running in the Indy car race. The WeatherTech Championship race will not have the GTD PRO class so the team moved to the GTD class for this event. Kirkwood is co-piloting the Lexus RC F GT3 with Ben Barnicoat.
Past Performance at Detroit: Dalton Kellett will be making his third start at the 2.35-mile, 13-turn street course in an Indy car after last year's doubleheader. His best finish was 18th. Kyle Kirkwood competed at Detroit in the Indy Lights Series last year when he won both races. He started third in his first race and won the pole for the second. He will be making his first start in an Indy car at this track as will fellow rookie Tatiana Calderón. The Foyt Team's best start is from the pole in Race 2 in 2014 with Takuma Sato; Sato also scored the team’s best finish of second in Race 2 in 2015.
Last Race: In the Indianapolis 500, Kirkwood started 28th and finished 17th, the second highest finishing rookie. Kellett started 29th, dealt with handling issues and finished 26th. Calderón did not compete as she is not running on ovals. J.R. Hildebrand is competing on all ovals in the No. 11 Chevy; he started 17th and finished 12th in the Homes For Our Troops/ABC Supply Chevrolet.
The Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix presented by Lear will be broadcast on the USA Network starting at 3 p.m. ET on Sunday, June 5 at the Raceway at Belle Isle Park in Detroit.
The 2023 Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix will be held in downtown Detroit in the shadows of the Renaissance Center.
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