Notes & Quotes: Ontario Honda Dealers Indy at Markham

The Ontario Honda Dealers Indy at Markham is being held on a brand new street circuit in the city of Markham, Ontario which is located about 18 miles north of Toronto's Exhibition Place where the historic Indy car race has been held since 1986. There were three years when it was interrupted: 2008 due to IndyCar restructuring and 2020-21 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.  The new circuit is longer, wider and smoother: the city repaved the streets for the inaugural event much to the drivers' delight. We asked them a few questions...

CAIO COLLET, a rookie on the NTT INDYCAR circuit, is looking forward to competing on a track that no one has experience on. The last time the Series held an inaugural event was in March when they ran in the streets of Arlington, Texas where Collet scored one of his best finishes (12th) in just his third race in an Indy car.

What do you think of the track now that you've seen it?

CC: "The track is awesome and I think it will race very well. It looks like a lot of fun."

What looks like the biggest challenge at Markham: finding the limit under braking, getting the car rotated in the tighter corners or managing the longer, faster sections? 

CC: "I think the biggest challenge will be finding the right balance between the slower, technical corners and the longer, faster sections. You need to be aggressive under braking and get the car rotated well in the tighter corners, but at the same time you have to make sure you don’t compromise the car for the faster sections. Finding that balance and building confidence with the track will be really important."

Where do you see the best opportunities to pass? 

CC: "I think the best opportunities will be in the heavier braking zones, like T5 / T6 and T7."

How important is the Track Walk when you come to a new circuit and what do you look for during a track walk and why? 

CC: "The Track Walk is really important, especially when you’re coming to a new circuit. I look at the bumps, the changes in elevation, the curbs, the braking references and how the track surface changes from one corner to another."

Caio Collet Facts: Age 24...Born in Sao Paulo, Brazil...Lives in Indianapolis, Indiana...In 2024-2025, he competed in the INDY NXT by Firestone Series, winning a total of four races, four poles and scored 15 podiums, ranked second in 2025 and 3rd in 2024 final standings...From 2021 to 2023, he competed in FIA Formula 3, won a total of three races, one pole and scored nine podiums with best rank of 8th in 2022...In 2019-20, he competed in Formula Renault Eurocup where he won five races (2020), three poles, 12 podiums to rank 2nd in standings ...Competed in French Formula 4 in 2018 and won the title along with seven races, three poles and posting 13 podiums... Began racing go-karts at age 7 and won multiple titles before moving to Europe...His father was a rally driver and Caio became interested in motorsports at age 4...Enjoys cycling, running, music from the 2000s and spending times with family and friends.

SANTINO FERRUCCI will be entering his 107th race in the NTT INDYCAR Series; for this event, team President Larry Foyt will be back on the timing stand calling strategy. Ferrucci is looking forward to racing on the new circuit which he believes will deliver a great race for the fans. He has not had the best luck on the old circuit, having been injured last year in morning warmup and missing the race; the year before he was involved in a multi-car crash in a blind corner, ending his race early. He is looking to turn the page this weekend.

What was your first reaction when you saw the Markham track layout?

SF: "I thought it was going to be pretty decent. Obviously, it's nice to have slightly longer street courses on the calendar like this one, so I think it'll race pretty well. It'll be great for the fans."

Having seen it, what do you think about it?

SF: "It's really nice. It's great to have a street course that's fully repaved; it looks rather smooth, which is good for the cars and good for grip. And it's a little bit wider than I was anticipating, which will be awesome."

How does it compare to the former circuit at Exhibition Place?

SF: "I don't think there's a lot to compare to Exhibition Place, this is such a completely different track.

Exhibition Place was really narrow in a very long straightaway. It was also super bumpy, very crowded, difficult to pass. Also, all the asphalt and concrete were very old. This place is much more modern, it's wider, a little bit quicker, so I think it'll be quite nice. This track actually has a lot more similarities to that of Arlington. Also having a double pitlane, I think the series is getting quite known for those. I like them because they're shorter, and it provides more racing."

The track is 100% asphalt? How does that make a difference?

SF: "It's just easier to set up the car when you're only on one type of surface versus when you're on multiple surfaces and you have to compromise with the car balance."

How different is the mindset when you're learning a brand new circuit compared with coming back to a track where you already have years of data?

SF: "I think your mindset with a brand new track is you have a lot more to learn about the driving side than the car side. When you're going back to a street circuit you know, you're learning more about the car -- and the tires which usually change from year to year. First year events at new places always shake things up a little bit."

Ferrucci Fast Facts: Age 28 (as of May 31)...Born in Woodbury, CT...Lives in Dallas, Texas...Married Renay Moore in January, 2024...In 2026, he continued to add to his record of  consecutive top-10 finishes in the Indianapolis 500 which is now eight with his eighth place finish...In 2025, earned career best finish of 2nd at Detroit Grand Prix and followed up with 3rd place finish at Road America for fourth consecutive top-5 finish...Earned 2024 NTT P1 Award at Portland, Ore. and posted 11 Top-10 finishes (career-best) to finish 9th in the NTT INDYCAR Series driver standings, his highest ranking to date. The Foyt team finished in the top-10 in the points standings for the first time since 2002... Scored career-best finish to date with his 3rd place finish in the 2023 Indianapolis 500 to continue his string of consecutive top-10 finishes in the 500...Finished 13th in standings with fourth place finish in the 500...drove part-time in 2021-22 but maintained top-10 streak in Indy 500 with finishes of sixth (RLL Racing) and 10th (Dreyer Reinbold Racing...Competed part-time in NASCAR Xfinity Series in 2021-22...moved to NTT INDYCAR Series fulltime in 2019 finishing 13th in standings for Dale Coyne and won Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year after finishing seventh... Made his INDYCAR debut in Detroit in 2018...Competed in Formula 2000, British Formula 3, GP3 finishing third at Spa Francorchamps as a rookie, was development driver for Haas F1 team for three years (2016-2018), moved to Formula 2 in 2018...Began racing karts at age 5, moved to cars in 2013.

LARRY FOYT was appointed as a Board Ambassador for Homes For Our Troops (HFOT), the publicly

funded nonprofit organization that builds and donates specially adapted custom homes for severely injured post-9/11 Veterans. HFOT builds these homes where the Veteran chooses to live, and continues the relationship with the Veterans after home delivery to assist them with rebuilding their lives.

"It is truly an honor to be an ambassador for Holmes For Our Troops," said Foyt. "I can attest that everyone in the organization cares one hundred percent about the Veterans and they are fully invested in carrying out their mission to help the severely injured post 9/11 Veterans rebuild their lives. It’s a huge point of pride to have the No. 14 Chevy in the Homes For Our Troops livery, and I look forward to my expanded role in creating awareness for this amazing organization."

The White House Historical Association's (WHHA) most recent episode of The White House 1600 Sessions, "History, Foyt Racing and America's 250th," published Thursday, August 13th. It features a conversation with host Stewart McLaurin, president of the WHHA, Santino Ferrucci and Larry Foyt discussing the upcoming Freedom 250 Grand Prix in the heart of the Nation's capital. Filmed at Indianapolis Motor Speedway earlier this year, Larry discussed his father A.J. and the importance of the Indy 500 to the Foyt family while Santino spoke about his entry into Indy car racing and eventually AJ Foyt Racing. Host McLaurin provided an interesting history lesson on past presidents' affinity for horsepower dating back to the 19th century when it was horse racing.

The audio version is available here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-white-house-1600-sessions/id1196409198?i=1000783151939.

The video version is available at:

https://www.whitehousehistory.org/the-white-house-1600-sessions/history-foyt-racing-and-americas-250th

The Ontario Honda Dealers Indy at Markham will be broadcast on FOX this Sunday, August 16th, starting at 12 noon ET.