Sage Karam chats with his team following practice for the ABC Supply 500 at Pocono Raceway. [Chris Jones Photo]
Long Pond, PA = Sage Karam of Chip Ganassi Racing loves his golden-doodle Max, now seven (in dog years). From the instant a week ago that a photograph of the dog and driver went viral on the internet via Instagram his canine co-partner has brought Karam some interesting attention in the IndyCar Series.
“The reason it got so much attention is because, as someone told me, ‘It looks like you’re naked with the dog,’” said Karam.
Of course the incident turned into an occasion for some good-natured ribbing from the IndyCar competitors, including some of his own teammates. “Tony Kanaan (a teammate at Ganassi) blew it up and it was on posters everywhere. Max became famous from it.”
This weekend at Pocono International Raceway is a homecoming for Karam. He grew up in this area and has been a local hero since winning the Indy Lights championship in 2013. “This track is a really great track. I finished second here in Indy Lights and I’ve always rolled off and been fast here.”
Karam continued, “Our car is really good in traffic. We’ve got balance between Turns 2 and 3. You go around in sixth gear and you don’t think the car is going to stick, but then it sticks and off you go.”
The rookie driver has turned a corner in the last several races, finishing third at Fontana and fifth at Iowa Speedway over the last two months. “It’s been a learning year,” he said. “We started out with a few downs and lately it’s been more up. Charlie Kimball has helped me so much, been such a positive contributor to my year.”
As Karam has learned the ropes of the IndyCar Series, the opposition has learned that Karam has some sharp elbows when it’s time to rock and roll on the track. A few, including Andretti Motorsports’ Marco Andretti have commented that “I’d say he (Karam) doesn’t care about making friends, and he’ll realize at some point you have to have some friends.”
In response, Karam gives the stock answer any of us would: “I just go out every weekend and drive my hardest. I drive as hard as I can. I am trying to win, I’m aggressive and I want to win.”
With a recent upturn in interest in the series one could make the case that a little controversy is good for the sport, the drivers and the tracks. “We need a little drama,” said Karam. “Now people are still talking about the race the next week after. The good thing is we are on the uptick, and we’ll take it.”
It hasn’t hurt that three American drivers, Graham Rahal of Rahal/Lanigan/Letterman Racing and Marco Andretti have staged some intensely competitive laps late in this season either, bringing more attention from the public to IndyCar racing.
“It’s cool that I have a lot of friends and family here,” said Karam of the increased interest in himself and the series (not to mention the dog). “I think that’s good for the sport as well. Many of the fans that come out now are first-timers. It’s not an added pressure or distraction to me as a driver. It just makes the race weekend better.”
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