IndyCar – Leena Gade joins Schmidt Peterson Motorsports

The Schmidt Peterson Motorsports (SMP) team announced Tuesday the signing of Leena Gade as race engineer for James Hinchcliffe (13th in 2017) from the 2018 season onwardsIndyCar. At the same time, she becomes the first woman to officiate in this position in the history of the American championship.

Leena Gade crosses the Atlantic with extensive experience in Endurance and GT. Triple winner of 24 Hours of Le Mans with Audi in LM P1, the Briton has also worked in Formula BMW, A1 GP and recently Bentley Motorsport in the Blancpain GT Series. “I am very honored to be able to work in IndyCar.”, she said. “When I was little, I used to watch IndyCar races, especially when Nigel Mansell (world champion Formula 1 in 1992) participated in 1993.”

We're very excited to welcome @Leena_Gade to SPM! She becomes the first female lead race engineer in #INDYCAR! #WomenInSport #Engineering

READ more https://t.co/3jz3K2yMbD pic.twitter.com/yLTtG5McBd

— Schmidt Peterson (@SPMIndyCar) 16th January 2018

“During my years in Endurance, I tended to follow the competition less, until a friend found a job there (Piers Phillips, the general manager of the SMP). It is an honor to have this position. It’s going to be a radical change from anything I’ve done so far. There will be a big learning curve, but that’s what I was looking for.”, explains the engineer.

Piers Phillips, SPM activities manager, does not hide his pride in working with Leena Gade. “I have known Leena for some time, and she deserves the reputation she has in the world of motorsport. We look forward to seeing her contribute to the team’s success in IndyCar.” » Schmidt Peterson Motorsports has scheduled a day of testing at Sebring International Raceway for January 24.