Interview: Alexander Rossi moving forward with Andretti Autosport

Alexander Rossi spoke with FanSided about IndyCar’s Phoenix Grand Prix, the 2017 Indianapolis 500, and how he’s moving forward with Andretti Autosport.

Alexander Rossi will forever be known as the winner of the 2016 Indianapolis 500. But now in his second year in the Verizon IndyCar Series, the California native wants to be more than a one-race champion.

Ahead of this weekend’s Phoenix Grand Prix, Rossi spoke with FanSided about how he feels his 2017 season is going so far, if winning the Indy 500 has him less nervous going into the Month of May, and how he’s continuing to improve with Andretti Autosport.

Alexander Rossi comes into Phoenix having earned his first top-five finish in the Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama, but after three races he explained that he’s still not feeling great about how the season is going so far.

“I think that Alabama was, we made lemons out of lemonade if you will, because it was a pretty miserable weekend all the way up until Sunday afternoon,” he told FanSided. “[At] Long Beach we saw a potential win slip through our fingers with an engine issue, and then St. Pete we had a pretty solid run going and we had a tire puncture.

“So it hasn’t been the smoothest start, but I think that the pace and the car is there, and I think that there’s potential for some pretty good things right around the corner.”

Rossi finished 15th in the Phoenix Grand Prix last year and believes that he can improve upon that result the second time around.

“Phoenix was actually pretty good for us,” he reflected. “It was my first oval, so we were pretty conservative through the whole weekend. Definitely in the test [this year], and our mindset now, going into this weekend, is a lot more aggressive.”

“We’re really looking forward to it, and I think we have a pretty good package there, so I’m excited about this race. It’s actually one of my better tracks. A lot of people don’t know that, but I think we’ll actually be pretty strong there.”

He also cautions anyone who looks at Phoenix as simply the first oval before the Indianapolis 500 not to overlook Saturday’s race. As he explained, the two have very little in common, and there’s a lot to do before the 500.

“There is nothing that we take from Phoenix and apply to Indianapolis,” he told FanSided. “The driving style is different, the cars are different, the approach, setup, methodology is different. The only thing that’s the same is I think your mind gets used to going in a circle for a couple hours, so it’s very much its own race.”

“Honestly, other than the excitement about it, we’re not thinking about the 500. From a sporting standpoint, we’re thinking about Phoenix this weekend and the Indy GP a couple weeks after that. We’ve got the test in St. Louis between those two, so we’ve got a lot of tracks and a lot of races to do before we actually get to the 500.”

Having said that, entering the 101st Indianapolis 500 as the defending champion has taken away some of his nerves, and he’s looking forward to working with five teammates for that historic race, including Formula 1 legend Fernando Alonso.

“There’s not the huge question mark of, what is going on and what are we doing?” he said. “I know what to expect. I know the areas that are important to have a good month, and I look forward to just getting back there and enjoying the experience a lot more from that standpoint.”

“Having four teammates last year was awesome, and I think we all got a lot out of it. Adding another one is fine,” he continued. “At this point, it’s the more the merrier, and the more information and data you can get collected around that place is a positive. It’s incredibly sensitive, and it changes every five minutes it seems. So to have that many different mindsets and people out there working is a super-positive thing for the whole team.”

Alexander Rossi is one of several drivers in their second year in IndyCar. And like Max Chilton said in our interview, he believes one of the biggest keys to his continued development is simply being able to work within the same organization.

“Continuity in motor sports is one of the most underrated things,” he explained, “but having said that, my car did change a little bit. I have a new engineer and a new strategist, both of which I’ve clicked with pretty quickly.”

“It’s still a little bit of a change to get used to, but at the end of the day, Andretti Autosport is an incredibly open environment, and even though guys have moved around, they’re still not too far. It’s pretty great to be able to be with the same group of people from one year to the next.

“The big thing that makes our organization stand out from other teams is how closely we work together,” Rossi continued. “There’s no closed doors at Andretti. Every driver, engineer, and mechanic work together to improve the whole team. We want to have four cars that are capable of winning every single weekend, and that extends all the way down to the drivers.”

“Obviously when you get on track you fight each other hard, and you want to beat them probably more than anyone else, but at the same time leading into the race, there’s a pretty cool dynamic that goes on. There’s a lot of group engineering that goes into each other’s cars, and it’s a great blend.”

When Alexander Rossi arrived at Andretti Autosport last year, fans wondered if he would stay with IndyCar or make the move back to Formula 1. Rossi answered that question in the offseason by signing a three-year contract with Andretti, and he told us he’s looking forward to having a future in IndyCar.

“It’s great,” he enthused. “It’s something that I haven’t really had in my career before, and I feel very fortunate to be able to do it with such an amazing organization as Andretti Autosport. I’ve felt very comfortable from day one in this team, and look forward to building on what we’ve accomplished, going to win more races, and fighting for championships.”

Next: Ed Carpenter shares his history with Phoenix Raceway

You can watch what’s next for Alexander Rossi when the Verizon IndyCar Series arrives in Phoenix this Saturday with the Desert Diamond West Valley Phoenix Grand Prix, taking place April 29 at 9 p.m. ET. The race will be nationally televised on NBCSN.

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