Chevrolet IndyCar V-6 Teams Ready for Hometown Action on The Raceway at Belle Isle Park Street Circuit

DETROIT (May 30, 2012) – For the first time since 2008, the sound of IndyCar racing engines will add to the normal hustle and bustle of downtown Detroit. On tap this weekend is the Chevrolet Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix, round six of the 2012 IZOD IndyCar Series schedule.

While every race on the schedule is important and demands dedicated attention to every detail, for the Chevrolet IndyCar V-6 drivers racing in the shadows of Chevrolet headquarters adds the element of hometown pride.

With a perfect record this season on street and road courses, four poles and four wins, the Chevrolet IndyCar V-6 teams and drivers head to 2.1-mile/14-turn The Raceway at Belle Isle Park Street Circuit with momentum and confidence.

“The return to Belle Isle is exciting for everyone involved with the Chevrolet IndyCar V-6 program,” said Mark Kent, Director of Chevrolet Racing. “This race is an important event to showcase our IndyCar program as well as an opportunity to showcase the city of Detroit. With the Chevrolet Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix being held right in our hometown, this race offers all of the Chevrolet and Powertrain employees as well as our partners in the Detroit area that have contributed to this program the ability to see first-hand the results of their hard work.

“The Chevy IndyCar V-6 is undefeated on street courses this year. We are looking forward to carrying that momentum to Belle Isle and having a great weekend at the Chevrolet Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix.”

For two of the Team Chevy IndyCar drivers, returning to The Raceway at Belle Isle Park Street Circuit has special meaning. Team Penske’s Helio Castroneves won his career-first race on the challenging course in 2000, and backed it up with another victory in 2001.

KV Racing Technology’s Tony Kanaan took the trip to Victory Lane in 2007.

While 2012 marks the debut of the all-new Chevy V-6 direct injected twin turbo charged purpose built engine fueled by renewable E85, the Bowtie brand competed previously in Indy-style competition as an engine manufacturer in 1986-93 and 2002-05 with V-8 engines. During that period, Chevrolet drivers notched two wins at Belle Isle – 1992 and 1993.

For this event Chevrolet will roll out the Corvette 427 Convertible to take center stage. Each of the 13 Chevrolet IndyCar V-6 drivers in the field for Sunday’s race will follow the 2013 model of the iconic nameplate to the green flag.

The Corvette 427 Convertible is the fastest and most-capable convertible in Corvette’s history. For fans that desire a closer look at the car, it will be showcased in the Team Chevy Display in the heart of Belle Isle to give race fans the opportunity to closely inspect the newest offering in the Corvette line-up. The Team Chevy Racing Display will be open 8 a.m.-6 .m. on Friday, 8 a.m.-6 p.m. on Saturday, and 7:30 a.m.-4 p.m. on Sunday.

The Chevrolet Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix is set to start on Sunday, June 3, 2012 at 3:30 p.m. ET with live television coverage on ABC.

Live radio coverage will be on XM Radio Channel 94 and Sirius Satellite Radio Channel 212. In addition, IndyCar live timing and scoring with the radio broadcast can be found at www.indy.car.com.

Fans can follow Team Chevy on Team Chevy Facebook, @TeamChevy on Twitter and on Google+.

CHEVROLET INDYCAR V-6

FAST FACTS

CHEVROLET DETROIT BELLE ISLE GRAND PRIX

RACEWAY AT BELLE ISLE PARK STREET CIRCUIT

JUNE 1-3, 2012

Chevrolet has won two previous IndyCar races at Belle Isle

§ Bobby Rahal, 1992

§ Danny Sullivan, 1993

Two current Chevrolet IndyCar V-6 drivers have victories at Belle Isle

§ Helio Castroneves, Two (2) wins – 2000, 2001

§ Tony Kanaan, 2007

After five races, seven (7) Chevrolet IndyCar V-6 drivers are in the top-10 in the standings:

§ 1. Will Power, No. 12 Verizon Chevrolet, 200

§ 2. Helio Castroneves, No. 3 Shell V-Power/Pennzoil Ultra Chevrolet, 164

§ 3. James Hinchcliffe, No. 27 Team Go.Daddy.com Chevrolet, 164

§ 5. Ryan Hunter-Reay, No. 28 Team DHL/Sun Drop Citrus Soda Chevrolet, 143

§ 8. Ryan Briscoe, No. 2 IZOD Chevrolet, 128

§ 9. Tony Kanaan, No. 11 GEICO/MOUSER Electronics Chevrolet, 113

§ 10. JR Hildebrand, No. 4 National Guard Chevrolet, 10

The all-new Chevrolet IndyCar V-6 has won four of the five races in the 2012 IZOD IndyCar Season

§ Streets of St. Petersburg – Helio Castroneves

§ Barber Motorsports Park – Will Power

§ Streets of Long Beach – Will Power

§ Streets of Sao Paulo – Will Power

CHEVROLET IN THE IZOD INDYCAR SERIES – FROM THE DRIVER’S SEAT:

WILL POWER, NO. 12 VERIZON TEAM PENSKE CHEVROLET, POINTS LEADER: “I really like the track at Belle Isle, I love to race there and I enjoy the track a lot. I think it’s going to be a really good event, especially for Chevy being in Detroit. Hopefully we can get the No. 12 Verizon car back in victory lane this weekend.”

HELIO CASTRONEVES, NO. 3 SHELL V-POWER/PENNZOIL ULTRA TEAM PENSKE CHEVROLET, TIED FOR 2ND IN STANDINGS: “I’m looking forward to returning to Detroit with the support of Shell V Power Pennzoil Ultra, the track at Belle Isle is always great. In my career I’ve had three wins at St Pete, 3 wins at Indy and hopefully we can win our third at Belle Isle for a sort of triple crown. The Chevy engines have done a great job for us so far and that should continue this weekend.”

JAMES HINCHCLIFFE, NO. 27 TEAM GODADDY.COM ANDRETTI AUTOSPORT CHEVROLET, TIED FOR 2ND IN STANDINGS: “The first four races went very well for us; the Go Daddy car has been very competitive on road and street courses. Coming off the ‘500’ where we had the pace as a team but no the (race) results we wanted we are very anxious to get back on track and get the Andretti Autosport cars back up front. This is my first time racing at Belle Isle so I’m looking forward to learning a new track – being a hometown race for Team Chevy it will be very important race for us and we’ll all work hard to get a Bow Tie back in victory lane.”

RYAN HUNTER-REAY, NO. 28 TEAM DHL/SUN DROP CITRUS SODA ANDRETTI AUTOSPORT CHEVROLET, 5TH IN STANDINGS: “I really enjoyed racing at Belle Isle, and we had a real good run there in 2008 (when he finished sixth), so I’m glad we’re going back there again. The team has been really strong on the street circuits – not just the DHL/Sun Drop team, but Andretti Autosport as a whole. So, you go into a race like this one expecting to be good and to run well. It’s a home race for Chevy, so we want to really rebound strongly from Indy. It really is time for us to start winning races.”

RYAN BRISCOE, NO. 2 HITACHI TEAM PENSKE CHEVROLET, 8TH IN STANDINGS: “I’m excited to be heading back to Belle Isle in the No. 2 Hitachi car. Especially now having Chevy as a partner there will be an added measure of importance that we perform well this weekend. It should make for great racing.”

TONY KANAAN, NO. 11 GEICO | MOUSER ELECTRONICS – KV RACING TECHNOLOGY CHEVROLET, 9TH IN STANDINGS:

JR HILDEBRAND, NO. 4 NATIONAL GUARD PANTHER RACING CHEVROLET, 10TH IN STANDINGS:

RUBENS BARRICHELLO, NO. 8 BMC | EMBRASE – KV RACING TECHNOLOGY CHEVROLET, 11TH IN STANDINGS:

ORIOL SERVIA, NO. 22 PANTHER/DREYER & REINBOLD RACING CHEVROLET, 13TH IN STANDINGS: “This couldn’t be better timing for us going into Detroit with the momentum we have from Indy. It’s a busy schedule. We have a lot of races back to back, which is usually tough, but in our case, we just got the great Chevy power behind us and it’s very refreshing. I think the entire team is looking forward to this weekend. Especially after just having done Indy, which was our first race with Chevrolet. It was such a great one by finishing fourth, coming through the back and the way we did it. It was a lot of fun. I’m really excited to go to Detroit which is Chevrolet’s home race. It’s also the place where I got my first podium as a rookie and in 2008 was the last time that I raced there. We were running up front and challenging for the win until the last pit stop and I think I finished 4th or 6th. Detroit is a place that has treated me very well and I’m excited to go back there this weekend with Chevy power.”

E.J. VISO, NO. 5 CITGO | PDVSA – KV RACING TECHNOLOGY CHEVROLET, 16th IN STANDINGS:

MARCO ANDRETTI, NO. 26 TEAM RC COLA ANDRETTI AUTOSPORT CHEVROLET, 18TH IN STANDINGS: “I love it there (the Belle Isle street circuit). I think it’s great that we’re going back there to race, and we never should have left there in the first place. It’s home for Chevrolet, so we want to win it for them as much as we want to win it for ourselves. It’s a bumpy and challenging track, but I like it because it builds character. You have to really wrestle the car, but that suits me fine. We have shown we have the pace to win, so that’s what we’re going there to do.”

SEBASTIEN BOURDAIS, NO. 7 MCAFEE DRAGON RACING CHEVROLET, 21ST IN STANDINGS: “Here we are, Detroit, the real start of my season. Now that Dragon Racing and I have joined the Chevy family, I am excited about the future prospects and particularly this coming weekend. I know how important this event is for Chevrolet, and I will do my very best to offer them a great result. I don’t know this track but I have faith in the potential of our new package !”

ED CARPENTER, NO. 20 FUZZY’S ULTRA PREMIUM VODKA ED CARPENTER RACING CHEVROLET, 23RD IN STANDINGS: “At Indy, we were able to race from 28th starting position into contention for the lead late in the race, so I’m going to carry the knowledge of that – and the confidence it gives me and the Fuzzy’s crew – into this weekend’s race at Detroit. I’m convinced that this team is capable of winning races this year, and I think we proved that Sunday at Indy. Detroit is one of my favorite street courses, and I’m pleased that it’s back on the IZOD IndyCar Series schedule this season. I’m looking forward to going back. It’s a cool venue, and it should be a good race for Chevy and the Detroit auto industry. Chevy has had a tremendous turnaround lately, and the strength of its IndyCar engine is proof of that.”