Chevrolet Indy Dual In Detroit Race 2 Tweet-By-Tweet

Chevrolet Indy Dual in Detroit presented by Quicken Loans Race 1 Results >>> @TheEDJE – Dale Coyne Racing nets a P1 Conway and a P3 Wilson for a double podium finish after waiting 25 years for first win. Top 10 – 1 Conway, 2 RHR, 3 Wilson, 4 Dixon, 5 Castroneves, 6 Franchitti, 7 Newgarden, 8 Power, 9 Rahal, 10 Jakes!!! Penske Racing’s Helio Castroneves by finishing 5th captures the season points through six of nineteen races. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2013)

Chevrolet Indy Dual In Detroit Race 2 Tweet-By-Tweet

The IZOD IndyCar Series experimented with a format of holding two street/road course races at the same venue over the same weekend and by most anyone's standards, the weekend was a great success.

This was be the first time IndyCar had tried this format for this type of racing (not an oval) and going in, people wondered if the physical demands of driver and track could hold up to the pressure and rigors of two 70 lap races in two days ... after all, the drivers were not just turning the car to the left all the time and last year, parts of the track surface came apart with about 25% of the race still to be run.

Another concern was the potential of the typical spring pop-up shower but the weather only became a bit of a factor during the first qualifying session on Friday - the rest of the weekend was fine.

In hosting the inaugural IZOD IndyCar Series doubleheader in the Chevrolet Indy Dual in Detroit presented by Quicken Loans, there are several new features to the street circuit for the race weekend **Extended the circuit to create more overtaking opportunities. A half-mile straightaway between Turns 2 and 3 has been added **More than 100,000 square feet of road surface has been refurbished **Curbing at Turns 3 and 4 has been reworked or removed to create tighter turns and, consequently, more overtaking opportunities. Image Credit: IICS

The first race was an exciting affair that featured passing due to the new, longer and wider configuration and very few YELLOW Flag cautions. The race was won by a first time winner from a smaller team that has two British drivers for street/road course races - Mike Conway driving for Dale Coyne Racing's Sonny's Bar-B-Que sponsored Honda-powered Dallara DW12.

Justin Wilson, Dale Coyne's full-season driver of the Boy Scouts of America sponsored Honda-powered Dallara DW12 had won the only other races for the team with two wins (one street/road course and one oval) came in at P3 giving the team a first-time double podium.

Dale Coyne Racing team-mate Justin bends over to congratulate Mike Conway on his first ever IZOD IndyCar Series win in Race 1. Image Credit: IICS

Before the Dual in Detroit Race 1 was run, in the morning's warm-up and Race 2 qualifications session, Mike Conway had already secured the Pole position for Race 2 so there was a lot of anticipation for Conway to become a double race winner for this first Dual in Detroit and take home a $50,000 prize in doing so.

Winning sportcar and Schmidt Hamilton HP Motorsports driver, Frenchman Simon Pagenaud became the second first-time IZOD IndyCar Series race winner in as many days. Pagenaud started from row 3 in P6 ... six positions better than he finished Race 1 on Saturday at P12. He's the sixth different winner -- from six different countries -- in seven races and the fourth first-time winner this season (Hinchcliffe, Sato, Conway, and Pagenaud). Image Credit: Simon Pagenaud via FB

The following New Media entries are a combination of Tweets from Twitter and comments from the author in observance to the events that transpired during the Dual in Detroit Race 2 … welcome to the 7th race of this 19 race IZOD IndyCar Series 2013 season -

@IndyCar
DRIVERS, START YOUR ENGINES! #IndyCar #DetroitGP

GREEN, GREEN, GREEN - LAP 1 of 70 in the Chevrolet Indy Dual In Detroit Race 2 begins

@stephanie_b_89
"@INDYCARPR: FULL COURSE YELLOW: Car No. 2 makes contact with the wall. #DetroitGP #IndyCar" @AJDinger : (

@Joshua_Rogers
Dinger wads up another car. Perhaps he needs to stick with vehicles with fenders. #IndyCar #DetriotGP

@DawnsKiss
@12WillPower Leader #IndyCar #Dual2 #Detroit under caution

@estradawriting
Power apparently got past Conway before the yellow light. Willy P your new leader. #IndyCar #DetroitGP

@DannieAsphall
"@INDYCARPR: Back to green on Lap 4. @Mikeconway26 took the lead entering Turn 1 on Lap 5. #DetroitGP #IndyCar"

@HalfShaftBlues
#IndyCar powerhouses Mike Conway & Dale Coyne Racing continue their dominance, while plucky upstarts like Penske & Ganassi keep hope alive.

@ComingToTheFlag
Simona in the wall. Full course caution. #indycar

@MattEmbury
oh and Simona de Silvestro's dead in the water turn 9. Crash. #indycar #detroitgp

LAP 10 of 70 - 1-Conway 2-Power 3-Pagenaud 4-RHR 5-Jakes 6-Dixon 7-Viso 8-Wilson 9-Hinchcliffe & 10-Castroneves

GREEN Flag Restart - LAP 13

@ScottManifold
Reds should last longer today with more rubber down. #indycar

@MattEmbury
@IAIndyFan Several as I predicted before the race, interesting though that Power and Pagenaud stayed out on reds. #indycar #detroitgp

@WoodsiesGarage
Josef Newgarden slows on the backstretch as the track goes yellow again. Most of this race has been run under caution. #IndyCar #DetroitGP

@AutoweekRacing
Cation out again for crash involving @tagliani. Sheesh. #DetroitGP #IndyCar

@jopijedd
I think it is time for the traditional "Ed Carpenter struggling with the fact that this circuit has corners in BOTH directions"... #indycar

GREEN Flag Restart - LAP 15

@BaronVonClutch
.@EJVISO has damage after contact with @h3lio's car. #IndyCar

@TomcatNASCAR
16 laps of #IndyCar is already more exciting than 375 laps of #NASCAR.

@Pablomg228
Difference between Indy and F1: Indy drivers have the guts to try to pass in places like this #detroitgp #indycar

@BoBarkfield
Detroit...crash city! #indycar #DetroitGP

@MattEmbury
Oh and Hunter Reay has a busted suspension, wall contact likely #indycar #detroitgp

LAP 20 of 70 Top 10 - 1-Conway 2-Power 3-Pagenaud 4-Dixon 5-Jakes 6-Kimball 7-Castroneves 8-Wilson 9-Hinchcliffe & 10-Franchitti

@tonydizinno
Yellow again, wiping out an 8.8 second lead for @Mikeconway26, aka the Stig, aka Conweezy. #IndyCar #DetroitGP

No one is riding on REDS after a round of pitstops on 4th caution - for debris

Top 10 - 1-Conway 2-Dixon 3-Kimball 4-Wilson 5-Franchitti 6-Kanaan 7-Vautier 8-Sato 9-Bourdais & 10-Saavedra Top 4 have not pitted

GREEN Flag Restart - LAP 23

@CarlsonsRaiders
Meanwhile, they're back to green once again in Detroit! #Indycar #DetroitGP

Vautier touches Sato and sends TAKU in the wall

@FormulaThoughts
Takuma no! :( #SuperSato #Indycar

With all of the YELLOW Flags - 5 now - three fuel strategies seem to playing out

Top 10 - 1-Conway 2-Dixon 3-Franchitti 4-Kanaan 5-Vautier 6-Power 7-Pagenaud 8-Bourdais 9-Hinchcliffe & 10-Andretti - Top 2 yet to pit

@RLenziBlade
It's official: At the 26th lap, half of the #DetroitGP has been run under caution. #IndyCar

GREEN Flag Restart - LAP 27

YELLOW Flag - Power gets punted from behind, Wilson, Carpenter, Viso, Tagliani, and Briscoe all involved - Sebastien Bourdais is the culprit on the punt that collected

everyone - Hinchcliffe busts a wing on the way through

@CarlsonsRaiders
Will Power clearly pissed at Bourdais, decides to just throw his gloves rather than the double birds this time. #Indycar #DetroitGP

@npssandy
@indycaradvocate At least it wasn't the track falling apart this year... #IndyCar #DetroitGP

Riiiight ... it's just the drivers that are falling apart

LAP 30 of 70 - Top 10 - 1-Kanaan 2-Dixon 3-Vautier 4-Franchitti 5-Bourdais 6-Conway 7-Pagenaud 8-Andretti 9-Jakes & 10-Kimball

@jimlefko
Crazy amount of crashes/cautions at #indycar race at Belle Isle. Infinitely more entertaining though than seeing MConway drive solo in front

@elmondohummus
You know, this race really DOES represent Detroit: No matter what efforts you bring, it all goes downhill. #indycar

@FilipCleeren
Restart order: 11 55 10 7 25 83 9 18 77 67 4 6 1 16 3 20 #detroitgp #indycar

Top 10 - 1-Kanaan 2-Vautier 3-Franchitti 4-Bourdais 5-Andretti 6-Kimball 7-Dixon 8-Conway 9-Pagenaud & 10-Rahal

GREEN Flag Restart - LAP 37

Conway is just carving up the field and he making it look easy - passes three cars left-right-left

@neilhudson
Conway already up to fourth, will be third when Bourdais serves his penalty if he even waits that long #IndyCar

@4TheLoveOfIndy
Vautier to the lead. #IndyCar #DetroitGP

LAP 40 of 70 - Top 10 - 1-Vautier 2-Conway 3-Kanaan 4-Kimball 5-Dixon 6-Franchitti 7-Pagenaud 8-Saavedra 9-Jakes & 10-Andretti

@WoodsiesGarage
Vautier pits, giving Conway the lead again. >1s lead over Kanaan. Kimball P3, 2.6s behind Conway. #IndyCar #DetroitGP

LAP 42 - Conway already is 2.7 seconds in the lead over Kanaan - WOW!

@racer_27
First Hinch and Will Power is back too! All hail #IndyCar mechanics. #DetriotGP

@spunk72
Man, @Mikeconway26 is driving this race LIKE A BOSS.  #Indycar  #detroitgp

@Deke15
 That replay of Conway passing the Ganassis looked like he DROPPED THE HAMMER and the others were standing still. #IndyCar

Kanaan pits and comes back out in 12th

@4TheLoveOfIndy
This is Ganassi's best shot at a win so far in 2013. Currently occupies 2-3-4. #IndyCar #DetroitGP

@drewallennews
Charlie Kimball gaining on Conway #IndyCar #DetroitGP

@racewithinsulin
No. 83 current lap time: 80.2126 for P2. Conway P1 at 82.4594. #DetroitGP #IndyCar -PLR

First time in two races and Conway gets passed ... Kimball in the lead

@mfriedman_63
Really, almost anyone can win these Indycar street races. Except the expected favorites! #DetroitGP #Indycar

@drewallennews
Pagenaud gets around Conway. Those tires are done. #IndyCar #DetroitGP

Conway in the pits - back on Blacks! - Conway out at P6

LAP 50 of 70 - Top 10 - 1-Pagenaud 2-Jakes 3-Andretti 4-Franchitti 5-Conway 6-Rahal 7-Kimball 8-Dixon 9-Kanaan & 10-Saavedra

@kenspi
This--> “@curtcavin: Great tweet from @BourdaisOnTrack "Seb avoids all the mess." Uh, he helped cause the mess. #IndyCar”

@MADMAUtwotwo
3-wide racing on the streets of Detroit!!!!! @IndyCar #indycar

@miller_j18
once they've figured out how to not hit each other, this is getting good! #IndyCar #DetroitGP

Conway up to P4 - Pagenaud and Jakes will need to pit for sure

The race is between Franchitti and Conway - first four cars are Honda-powered

@carbonconcepts
Why no Conway in-car?  #indycar #detroitgp

Pagenaud in and out and ahead of the Franchitti Conway battle

@IndyCar
Great battle between Conway and Franchitti for 3rd. #IndyCar #DetroitGP

@INDYCARPR
Of note: these are the first laps led on road/street course for @JamesJakes. #DetroitGP #IndyCar

@michaelw2000
Anyone notice that Power is getting closer to Bourdais?!?! LOL!!! I sense a "Duel" coming! About 4 sec difference! #DetroitGP #IndyCar

Conway passes Franchitti on LAP 57 - 28 seconds behind Pagenaud - Jakes in and comes out in P2 ahead of Conway

LAP 60 of 70 - Top 10 - 1-Pagenaud 2-Jakes 3-Conway 4-Franchitti 5-Dixon 6-Andretti 7-Kimball 8-Rahal 9-Kanaan & 10-Castroneves

There is racing all through the top 10

@drewallennews
Pagenaud is one of those drivers who has constantly been knocking on the door. Does he get his first win today? #IndyCar #DetroitGP

@4TheLoveOfIndy
Kanaan pits from ninth. #IndyCar #DetroitGP

@OfficialGinaN
Top two have never won #IndyCar race... Makes it more exciting! #DetroitGP

@99forever
In the top 3, Pagenaud and Jakes both just set fastest laps of the race. Jakes's was faster. #IndyCar #DetroitGP

The top 3 cars are all in sight of each other - what a grand street course race ... real ChampCar racing is back bigtime!

@WoodsiesGarage
Vautier spears the wall during another ad break, now stalled. Bourdais also went off but is still going. Local yellow. #IndyCar #DetroitGP

@julesia18
ABC is picking the WORST times to go to commercial!!!! #indycar

LAP 65 of 70 - Top 5 are 1-Pagenaud 2-Jakes 3-Conway 4-Dixon 5-Franchitti and the field is stable unless something happens

@CarlsonsRaiders
Pagenaud is the fastest guy on track right now, doesn't look like Jakes or Conway have anything for him. #Indycar #DetroitGP

@indycaradvocate
Jakes trying to hold on to P2. Big day for Pags and Jakes both. #IndyCar #DetroitGP

@Jose_Galvan
The lethargic ABC @IndyCar announcers are describing an exciting race as though it were a medical procedure. Come on! #indycar

@IndyCar
. @simonpagenaud out up front with just a couple laps to go! #IndyCar #DetroitGP

Conway closes on Jakes at 2 LAPS to go

@TheoTradeMark
Two laps to go. Conway trying to battle Jakes for the 2nd #DetroitGP #Indycar

WHITE Flag

@therossbynum
At this point the circus clowns just tumble out of the clown car. Exhausted. Clown union preparing strike as we speak.  #IndyCar #DetroitGP

Race 2 Podium drivers congratulate each other during the cool down lap at the Chevrolet Indy Dual in Detroit presented by Quicken Loans. Image Credit: Nicolas Dura via Twitter

@mfriedman_63
A podium of Schmidt/Peterson, RLL, and Coyne??!! Are you kidding??!! :) #Indycar #DetroitGP

@scottaltimaman
Oui Oui! Pagenaud wins! #IndyCar

Schmidt Hamilton Racing’s Simon Pagenaud, driving the Hewlett Packard sponsored Honda-powered Dallara DW12, wins his first IZOD IndyCar Series race in 39 starts. Image Credit S. Pagenaud – iOS photo

@CrashGladys
BEST DRIVERS IN THE WORLD! 6 winners in 7 races, from 6 different countries. It doesn't get any better than THAT, race fans! Epic

@AutoweekRacing
Pagenaud wins #DetroitGP ahead of Jakes and Conway, but Conway was the undisputed star of this race and the weekend. #IndyCar

@BaronVonClutch
.@simonpagenaud Wins Race Two at the @detroitgp! Pagenaud also banked the fastest lap of the race. #IndyCar

First win for proven ALMS sportscar series winner Simon Pagenaud.

@ScottManifold
What a wacky year! Someone predicted that right? Nice job podium! Pagenaud, Jakes, Conway #indycar #detroitgp

Honda-power captures the top 5 positions with more horsepower than Chevy-power ... in DETROIT!!!

Overnight television ratings for ABC's live telecast of the second race of the Chevrolet Indy Dual in Detroit on June 2 grew 14 percent over last year's Sunday telecast, which also aired on ABC.

The network earned a 0.8 overnight rating, up from a 0.7 overnight for last year's race at the Raceway at Belle Isle Park. The June 1 race, which was new this year, earned a 0.7 overnight rating on ABC.

... notes from The EDJE


**Article first published as Chevrolet Indy Dual In Detroit Race 2 Tweet-By-Tweet on Technorati**

2013 IZOD IndyCar Series Season Predictions Using The 'More Front Wing' Format

Takuma Sato has a lot to prove in this break out season for the former F1 stand out. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2012)

2013 IZOD IndyCar Series Season Predictions Using The 'More Front Wing' Format

It is common for those who follow the American open wheel racing scene to make predictions just before a season starts and the silly season becomes officially over.

More Front Wing, an IndyCar news and views website, had the simplest approach to this prediction issue and it serves as a good template and baseline upon what to expect for the 2013 season.

View Slideshow: 2013 IZOD IndyCar Series Season Predictions

This year is the second, or sophomore, full year the new chassis that was tested by the late Dan Wheldon, and is numerically attached to his memory through the Dallara designation of DW12, will be used to contest the IZOD IndyCar Series season championship. The fact that the series ran a shortened season left the teams with a lot of time to work toward their strategy on how they will choose to compete and win with the familiarization of the turbo-powered and more robust DW12.2.

Will Ryan Hunter-Reay repeat in 2013 for Andretti Autosport? Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2012) 

The original frame delivered one of the most competitive seasons in about 20 years ... so, many wonder, now that the standardization of the push-to-pass, which was introduced to the new engine-chassis package last July on the streets of Toronto, if this type of close competitive performance be expected for 2013?

After reading many predictions as to how the 2013 season will play out with the first race of the season - Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg - to be run this weekend, March 22-24, through the streets of St. Petersburg, here are the predictions from The EDJE to get things started.

More Front Wing had the simplest approach to this prediction issue and it serves as a good template and baseline upon what to expect for the 2013 season. 

2013 IICS season predictions using the More Front Wing format:

Five different teams were represented in victory lane last season. Will that number be higher or lower this year?

Lower - investments by established teams in their subtle ways of development will show themselves in the DW12 sophomore year - so sophomore developments will rule the day.

Who will surprise everyone by winning a race?

Two drivers top my list ... well maybe three - 

Simona de Silvestro is poised to make a statement with her stable team and engine set-up this year - KV Racing Technology / Chevy. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2012)

1) Simona de Silvestro who has won in a strong open wheel field before in the Atlantic series race at Long Beach - good on the streets. 

Takuma Sato at the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach last year when he was driving for Rahal Letterman Lanigan in a one car team. Sato will be moving to the team that fields the car that appears here tracking right behind him ... AJ Foyt Enterprises. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2012)

2) Takuma Sato - if AJ can finally deliver on the promise of good equipment.

James Jakes after he he went off-roading at Sonoma's turns 9 and 10 in the IndyCar configuration. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2012)

3) James Jakes - he is with a team - Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing - that can really challenge the establishment three of Penske, Ganassi, and Andretti ... and Jakes really is a winner.

Who will have a disappointing season?

Takuma Sato - for the same reasons that he can be a surprise ... AJ Foyt prepared equipment.

Who will win the Indianapolis 500?

Graham Rahal between set-up laps at the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach while racing for Chip Ganassi. New team, new stablemate in James Jakes, and same old boss ... Bobby Rahal. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2012) 

Graham Rahal - the Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing crew knows how to win this thing and is hungry to drive like they stole it. Graham has the experience and I believe they will have the set-ups come race day.

Who will be the 2013 IZOD IndyCar Series champion?

Will Power starts this year being the odds on favorite to win it all and his speeds at the final test at Barber Motorsports Park stand as the marker. He was fastest by 1/4 of a second and nearly 1/2 mph at the end of four sessions. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2012) 

Will Power - 'Nuff said.
ENDS

Here is the NBCSN schedule for the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg:

Saturday, March 23: IndyCar Qualifying at 2:30 p.m.

Broadband: IndyCar.com

Sunday, March 24: Indy Lights: Streets St. Petersburg at 11 a.m.

Broadband: IndyCar.com

Sunday, March 24: Honda Indy Grand Prix of St. Petersburg at Noon - ET

Broadband: IndyCar.com also NBCSports.com

Radio: IMS Network and SiriusXM Radio

Tuesday, March 26: Honda Indy Grand Prix of St. Petersburg Re-Air at Midnight

... notes from The EDJE

----

Will Power's First Celebration At The 38th Toyota Grand Prix Of Long Beach

Will Power gives a thumbs-up to lucky photographer, Myles Regan, as he celebrates his improbable and masterful second win at the 38th Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach and the first win for the new Chevrolet-powered DW12 Dallara. Image Credit: Myles Regan (2012)

Will Power's First Celebration At The 38th Toyota Grand Prix Of Long Beach

This posting serves to clear the record as to when Verizon Team Penske's Will Power was first able to celebrate his second win on the temporary street course that has served as a race venue, now, for 38 years. Most people think that the celebration would not really begin until the car and driver arrive at Victory Circle where all of the credentialed photographers stake out a good position to capture the action on the provided riser. Today, this was not the case - EVIDENCE HERE.

At the end of the race, Helio Castroneves (Penske-Chevy) did a chrome-horn nudge with the front of his DW12 to rear of former F1 driver Rubens Barrichello (KVRT-Chevy) at the apex of the hairpin turn #11. Rubens spun and blocked Helio from going around Rubens car and Helio, in turn, blocked Justin Wilson (Dale Coyne-Honda) and both Helio and Justin ended up being stalled with their cars unable to pass thus shutting down the rest of the straight-away to the Start/Finish line. Penske's Ryan Briscoe, however, was able to sneak through before the orange-suited Holmatro IZOD IndyCar Series Safety Team were able to take over and straighten out the mess in the corner.

What happened next is the stuff of footnote legend - Will Power came up to the apex of turn #11 and was completely stopped.

Upon recognizing his plight ... and then in a move that showed he could no longer contain his excitement at winning his second Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach race (after three consecutive pole positions and no win), he unstrapped himself, got out of the car, and shared his celebration with fellow stuck drivers, the crowd in the bleachers closest to the turn, the crews that came out to clear the mess, and the photographers who were tucked in at the "island" apex shooting location.

One has to love the back story that not only did Chevy win the race and place a second car on the podium (Andtetti Autosport's James Hinchcliffe - "Mayor of Hinchtown"/"Manica") at P3 ... they took 7 of the top 10 places in the race after being penalized 10 positions to start the race. The closest Chevy on the grid at race start was Penske's Ryan Briscoe at P11.

At race end, two Chevy's get together and blocked the track to the final straight that led to the Start/Finish line. One would assume that Beaux Barfield, Director of Race Control had to "call" the race and sort out the finishing order due to the blockage.

Power gives a personal honor to the creators and race engineers of his Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet-powered twin-turbo DW12 Dallara as he bends over to suggest a kiss on the car through his helmet. Image Credit: Myles Regan (2012) 

Myles Regan of Regan Digital Images (regandigitalimages.com), being the professional he is, kept the camera clicking away in gang-shot mode and he shared a file that contains about 140 images or so that are just excellent and capture the whole incident ... even down to Will Power bending over his Verizon Penske Chevy and giving it a kiss through his helmet on the nose cowling that covers the suspension. The Video here shows the images Myles was able to capture in post-race turn #11 which are just priceless.

For the second time this month, Will Power came into an IZOD IndyCar Series race expecting nothing more than a top-five finish to secure valuable points in the championship.

But with two victories in the young season - starting from ninth at Barber and 12th at Long Beach - the hard-charging Aussie might be changing his outlook. Starting an IndyCar race from the pole position ... of which Power has 10 over the past 20 races, including one this year, might not be the automatic ticket to Victory Circle.

Having to start the race from the 12th position in the 38th Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach on April 15 (due to a 10-grid position penalty assessed to all Chevrolet teams for unapproved engine changes), Power squeezed 31 laps from 18.5 gallons of fuel on the 1.968-mile street circuit while being chased down by former ChampCar World Series team-mate (Team Aussie), Simon Pagenaud, the final 15 laps. Will Power won by 0.8675 of a second.

"I could not believe it," said Power, who notched his 17th IZOD IndyCar Series victory. "You always believe that it is possible to win or get on the podium, but it was very unlikely, the fact that it was going to be a two‑stop race. But it was just amazing that Simon did three stops and I did two stops, like two different strategies and the result was similar. There was hardly any time between us as we crossed the finish line.

"It's just always a surprise in IndyCar, I think. You can never predict; you can never assume going into a race. You just have to be smart as it plays out.

"This was a very sweet victory because I've been on pole here in 2009, '10 and '11, and it just frustrated me that every year something would happen and I couldn't win. Once again this weekend, I'm starting 12th and I felt as though, 'That's impossible to win. I've got another bad year at Long Beach.

"But it was just a good race. I pushed hard all the time, no mistakes, great strategy, and just a great team effort again."

The team effort has led Will Power and Team Penske to the top of the IZOD IndyCar Series championship standings by 24 points over team-mate Helio Castroneves heading to Sao Paulo, Brazil, where Power has won the past two years running.

Last year, after not converting the Long Beach pole into a podium (he finished 10th in the third race of the season), Power was seven points to the rear of Dario Franchitti. He wound up second in the standings - by 18 points, which included eight bonus points for a corresponding numbers of pole wins -- for the second consecutive year.

Power added that the team effort is spread across the organization, which has swept the three races (Castroneves winning the season opener on the streets of St. Petersburg). The Long Beach IndyCar Series win was Team Penske's first since 2001, when Castroneves prevailed.

"I think it's just that they've been probably one of the best prepared with the new car," Power said. "We did a lot of miles (since manufacturer testing began in November). Chevy has worked very hard, and obviously our first hit of the year ‑‑ obviously the 10‑spot grid penalty was a precautionary thing and didn't affect us too badly.

"To me, it has been hard work. I think my guys feel very confident no matter where we start now that it's always possible."

A hand thrust through the air by former ChamCar World Series driver Will Power denotes the joy of winning (for the second time) the grand dame of all American open-wheel temporary street course races - the 38th Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach. Image Credit: Myles Regan (2012)

By The Numbers - Race #3 On The Streets Of Long Beach:
Some numbers to note following the 38th Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach, the third of sixteen events planned for the 2012 IZOD IndyCar Series season.

0 - Lotus-powered cars on the podium in the 2012 season.

1 - Wins at the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach by a Chevy-powered DW12

2 - Wins by Will Power at the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach in a turbo-charged car -- one in a CCWS Panoz DP-01 and one in the Chevy-powered DW12.

3 - Drivers who have finished in the top 10 in each of the first three IZOD IndyCar Series events: Will Power, James Hinchcliffe and Simon Pagenaud.

5 - Different teams represented in the top five in the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach.

7 - Different teams represented in the top 10 in the IZOD IndyCar Series standings.

9 - Lead changes in each of the first three race of the season. Percentage points increase in viewership on NBC Sports Network (formally Versus) over the same number of races in 2011.

11 - Positions gained from race start and consecutive races led by Will Power dating to 2011.

11.5 - Average starting position for Will Power in his two wins in 2012.

13 - Positions gained by James Hinchcliffe in securing P3 podium position standing with Simon Pagenaud - P2 and Will Power - P1.

15 - Positions gained by Tony Kanaan and JR Hildebrand in the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach, most of any drivers… Positions gained by Kanaan in IZOD IndyCar Series standings by finishing fourth at Long Beach as he advanced from 26th to 11th.

24 - Points separating Will Power (127) and Helio Castroneves in the IZOD IndyCar Series standings.

26 - Laps led by Simon Pagenaud -- nine more laps than he had led in his previous 20 Indy car starts.

184 - Consecutive IndyCar starts for Tony Kanaan dating to the 2001 CART race in Portland.

170,000+ - Fans who attended the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach event weekend, according to information released by the Grand Prix Association of Long Beach, the event promoter.

WILL POWER (No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet, winner Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach): "It's a great day for the Verizon Team Penske Chevy. We really didn't think it was possible to win from 12th place here because it was a two-stop race, but once again with (strategist) Tim (Cindric), Dave (Faustino), my engineer, and all the boys we overcame a 10-spot penalty." (About Pagenaud bump): "When Pagenaud hit my tire, I thought he should have had a penalty for that. So I was happy beating him because I was kind of angry at him for ruining another one of my races." (About Pagenaud closing in on the lead in the final laps): "They told me (Pagenaud) was coming and that I had a four-second gap and just needed to save as much (fuel) as I could and then I ran hard at the end, the last lap or two, and it was enough."

SIMON PAGENAUD (No. 77 Schmidt Hamilton HP Motorsports, finished second): "It was fantastic. The car was great from the beginning. The guys, they did a great job running. We're a one-car team operation, we don't have as much data as Penske or Ganassi, but I'm glad we're giving them a good run for their money. One more lap, man, I would have tried I tell you."

JAMES HINCHCLIFFE (No. 27 Team GoDaddy.com Chevrolet, finished third): "The credit has got to go to Firestone. The tires that they bring here are letting us race, and it's mixing things up with different tire strategies. It was certainly exciting from where I was. I hope it was exciting for you guys in the stands, and thanks to all the fans that come out to the race because this is just one of the best events we go to all year bar none. The guys up in the stand were making all the right calls. I don't know, it's something about this race track that treats me well and I've been trying to get this first podium. We start in the front row and it doesn't happen.We start in the second row and it doesn't happen, and after Barber I said to myself, 'I bet $20 bucks my first podium comes in some bizarre circumstance where I start off in the teens,' and sure enough, here you go."

RUBENS BARRICHELLO (No. 8 BMC/ Embrase - KV Racing Technology Chevrolet, finished ninth): "Honestly I had a good race today. There were so many yellows the team used a strategy that had me saving fuel. Once we knew we were going to be short, I started to push hard. I would just like people to have more respect for each other on the track.   I was hit on every side of my car. .Apart from that, I enjoyed myself today.   To start so far back and finish in the top-10 again shows I am getting better and better, so hopefully I will have my best result two weeks from now in Brazil."

RYAN BRISCOE (No. 2 Hitachi Team Penske Chevrolet, finished seventh): "We just were stuck in traffic all day long. It's a real shame because I think we had the quickest car out there and we just couldn't do anything with it. We had a bad pit stop, the first one, and that put us way behind and from there we couldn't go anywhere. It was just a really frustrating day."

HELIO CASTRONEVES (No. 3 Auto Club Team Penske Chevrolet): "We were just trying to finish and there were two cars in front of me and Rubens, and Rubens was being, I think, a bit cautious and stopped the car and he stopped too much—to the point that I obviously touched him. My intention was never to pass him, but we ended up blocking the track."

Thank you Helio, for creating (and Myles Regan for capturing) a special unscripted moment to make this 38th edition of the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach one of the most entertaining in years ... with a post-race celebration worthy of the event-winning moment.

Next weekend catch race #4, the IZOD IndyCar Series Itaipava Sao Paulo Indy 300 presented by Nestle April 29, 2012: Streets of Sao Paulo. The race will be broadcast - on cable - live on NBC Sports Channel (formally Versus) at 11:00AM ET - SiriusXM Satellite Radio on Channel 94 - with Live Timing & Scoring from the web here - http://content.indycar.com/racecontrol - Also, follow the action at Twitter with the #hashtag - #saopauloindy - Sao Paulo Indy 300 (@IndyemSaoPaulo).

... notes from The EDJE


** Article first published as Will Power's First Celebration At The 38th Toyota Grand Prix Of Long Beach on Technorati **