99th Indianapolis 500 Qualifications Exemplify A Disastrous Start To 2015

Verizon P1 Pole Winner sticker as it was placed on Target Chip Ganassi Racing's Scott Dixon's No. 9 Chevrolet-powered Dallara IndyCar. Notice the lack of attention to detail on how the sticker was placed. Image Credit: Joe Skibinski

99th Indianapolis 500 Qualifications Exemplify A Disastrous Start To 2015

After having a fairly interesting week of watching the Verizon IndyCar Series work in, and understand, the new aerodynamics kits for large oval racing that were added to their Dallara DW12 racing platforms, and after the weather elements washed out any chance of holding the scheduled 4-lap qualification runs used to decide where the drivers would line up for the INDY 500 race, then, lastly, a third Chevy chassis spun and turned around backwards causing the chassis to lift off of the track surface, Race Control saw fit to shut down all of the team and driver development understanding achieved over hundreds of laps logged at the old Brickyard.

The third Chevy-powered accident damage on Ed Carpenter's Dallara DW12. It was feared that the new aerodynamics body work led to having cars become airborne when they spin and present the rear of the car toward the wind. Image Credit: Mike Young

One might say ... IndyCar Race Control "Bricked" the 99th Indianapolis 500 qualifications.

The 2015 season at this point has had more going wrong with the competition and fan enjoyment than at almost anytime during these merger years.

To understand and gain a perspective on how the decisions made for Sunday's augmented qualifications session played out, one needs a brief review of the 2015 season.

2015 Verizon IndyCar Series season had its opener in Brazil canceled ...

its second scheduled race at St. Pete ended up in a non-passing crash fest with the first time implementation of new aerodynamics body work with restricted testing imposed on all teams ...

its third scheduled race, Indy Grand Prix of Louisiana, at NOLA (a brand new venue) ran almost having more laps run under YELLOW Flag with the rest of the timed-race laps being a mud bath ...

Long Beach Formula E Race winner Nelson Piquet Jr. - NEXTEV TCR Formula E Team - at the beginning of the FIA Formula E electric car open-wheel race as he negotiates Turn 3 at the end of Shoreline Drive at Pine Ave.. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2014)

the fourth scheduled race at The Beach becoming a snoozer as a lack of passing ruled the day (two weeks earlier the FIA sanctioned Formula E had more interesting competition) ...

the fifth scheduled race at Barber Motorsports Park finally had some excitement - and passing, imagine that - passing ...

and finally, if this idiocy of INDY500 decision-making keeps up, the crown jewel of Speedway, Indiana during the month of May might become the Grand Prix of Indiana as opposed to the INDY 500 because, again, the Race Control by committee crowd allowed competition to break out (OH! ... and it was a road race).

Announcement of modified and augmented INDY 500 qualification's procedure at IMS delivered by CEO Mark Miles (L) and Race Control Director Derrick Walker (R). Image Credit: Bret Kelley

This excerpted and edited from Racer Viewpoints -

MILLER: Barnum & Bailey spotted at IMS
By Robin Miller - Sunday, 17 May 2015

It wasn’t as big a circus as 1997, when every bit of integrity and competition got kicked to the curb so the Indy Racing League could avoid the public relations nightmare of not starting the fastest 33 qualifiers.

But Sunday’s sideshow at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway would have surely brought a little smirk to Barnum & Bailey. A lot of panic, a little knee jerk, possibly some politics, a little confusion and a lot of “WTF?” summed up a very forgettable and embarrassing day in IMS history. From the time Ed Carpenter flipped in morning practice to the inane Last Row battle, it looked more like the Speedrome instead of Speedway.
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Carpenter’s crash was the third in which a Chevrolet­powered Dallara driver wound up on his head. Helio Castroneves got upside down on Wednesday, followed by Josef Newgarden on Thursday. All three drivers escaped injury but not speculation. Why were their Indy cars suddenly sailing?

The finger was pointed at the new aero kits with the angled tire ramps and ramps inside the rear wheel pods or the vertical wickers on the nose but was countered by the Physics Police who reasoned as long as there are tunnels under a car and it goes backward there is going to be lift. Everyone seemed to have a theory except IndyCar, which offered nothing publicly until Sunday. “We knew the cause of the first two wrecks were very different and that probably obscured the overall concern,” said Hulman & Company CEO Mark Miles, who at least chose Indy qualifying over golf this weekend.

IndyCar did mandate those vertical wickers be removed from all Chevys, but not the Hondas, after Helio flew.

Of course Carpenter crashed with no wicker but using the extra boost for qualifying while Castroneves had the wicker and normal horsepower before a tank­slapper sent him into the wall. Newgarden had no wicker and no added boost in a crash caused by a deflated tire. Even though Carpenter snapped loose before climbing the wall backwards and flipping over, it was his accident that suddenly sent IndyCar officials into DefCon 1. So when IndyCar sent out the word that it was taking away the extra power for qualifying and all the cars would have to start the race in the aero package they used to qualify (which instantly slowed the cars by several miles an hour), it created some predictable emotions in Gasoline Alley.

“We look like a bunch of pussies,” said one driver.
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“It’s amateur hour, they’re throwing darts at a board,” said a former IndyCar champion of the process.

Honda drivers and teams bit their tongue but the obvious question was why did Honda have to abide by the edict?

Competition director Derrick Walker replied: “Just because we’ve seen three incidents happen with a Chevrolet doesn’t mean that there aren’t three Hondas out there that are likely to happen [fly while going backward] or could happen. I can assure you that Honda doesn’t believe that they have any issue, but then again, they will admit right now that we don’t have that answer.
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Was it more about safety or competition? Chevy has clearly been ahead of Honda in pace this season and this month (with or without extra boost) so it’s not like Honda lost any advantage, other than its cars weren’t flipping at any speed or under any configuration.

Three accidents force a total change in philosophy? Sending drivers out with a combination they hadn’t run all month for a short practice session before qualifying hardly seemed safe but that’s what happened.

Some people blamed IndyCar for not doing more testing with the oval­track kits, which prompted one veteran mechanic to say: “We could have run for two weeks but unless somebody spun backwards, how would we know if there was a problem?”

Of course nobody wants to see anybody hurt when it can be prevented and nobody crashed Sunday afternoon ...
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And naturally the day ended with some head shaking stupidity. Instead of letting the Fast 9 at least get one chance to battle for the pole, the hearty but tiny gathering of fans that hung around had to endure the dramatic duel to see which one of the 34 drivers was [to be] sent home. IndyCar opted to have the slowest four drivers go back out to eliminate one of them in an effort to keep the insulting “Bump Day” theme alive.

How pathetic.

There’s no Jim Nabors this year so my suggestion is scrap “Back Home Again in Indiana” for “Send in the Clowns.”
[Reference]

Charlie Kimball and former champion Dario Franchitti pose for fan pictures at IMS. Image Credit: Forrest Mellott

Robin Miller (Racing, Viewpoints) was very correct to cite the 1997 IRL embarrassing INDY500 event because - and this is the reason - The Hulman/George decision-making Race Control by committee of 2015 was what had the event of last weekend's 99th INDY 500 qualifications feel so similar and familiar.

We are reliving the Tony George inspired competitive attitudes that the IRL gave American Open Wheel Racing right now in 2015. We have a racing series that is being run by a committee of pussies and one of them has been brought back (TGBB) after being replaced (with reason) a few years ago ... need we say more?

Robin Miller​ spanks the system but does not call them out as morphing into the IRL of old ... running the present day.

Comment/Observation From FB:
Ira Fierberg · Friends with Dicken Wear and 82 others - If you watched the coverage on Sunday, Roger Penske was interviewed and several times during the interview he referred to the sanctioning body as "The IRL"!

Can the reinstatement of Tony George as Chief "Clown & Mucky-Muck" be too far behind?

... notes from The EDJE


TAGS: Verizon IndyCar Series, 99th INDY 500, Indianapolis, Qualifications, Aerodynamics, Chevrolet-­powered, Honda-powered, Dallara, Testing, Hulman & Company, Mark Miles, Derrick Walker, Race Control, Boost, The EDJE,

Qualifications for the Iowa Corn Indy 250 requires cheat sheets

Defending Iowa Corn Indy 250 race winner Ryan Hunter-Reay: "The Iowa Speedway oval is one of a kind; a very unique track that makes for some of the closest racing of the year. Last year's race came down to the wire and I expect the same this year." Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2012)

Qualifications for the Iowa Corn Indy 250 requires cheat sheets

Let's be honest, changing racing formats up to create attention and increase fan interest sounds like a good idea until one recognizes that the elements that have changed will not be televised. That's right, for Iowa Corn Indy 250 presented by DEKALB, the three 50 Lap sprint races (150 Laps total) to be run Saturday evening, used to establish the starting order (with bonus points awarded for positions 1-12 earned) of the official points paying race on Sunday, will not be televised.

The lack of television broadcast options leaves real fans with IndyCar Race Control Timing and Scoring, Smart Phones (IndyCar 13 App) and ... cheat sheets.

Iowa Corn Indy 250 presented by DEKALB cheat sheet. Eighteen-second laps on the .875-mile Iowa Speedway oval -- 150 Laps for qualifications and 250 Laps in the Iowa Corn Indy 250 presented by DEKALB -- is a dizzying pace for IZOD IndyCar Series drivers ... and spectators.  Image Credit: IndyCar.com

This excerpted and edited from IndyCar.com -

The heat races include transfers to Race 3 for the top two finishers in the first two qualifying races.

Positions in the three heat races will be determined by single-car, single-lap qualifying (4 p.m. ET) on the .875-mile, variably-banked oval. A blind draw will determine the qualifying order. Practice  (11:45 a.m.-1 p.m. ET) and qualifying also are featured on indycar.com and INDYCAR 13 with Timing & Scoring and the IMS Radio Network call.

Here's the format, which adds the lure of bonus points – from nine points for the Verizon P1 Award winner and descending by one point each position to three points for seventh-eighth, two points for ninth and 10th and one point for 11th and 12th:

Race 1 -- Will consist of the even-numbered positions, starting with position 8 from single-car qualifying. The results of Race 1 shall determine the even-numbered positions in the starting field, starting with position 12. The top two finishers will transfer to Race 3 and start in positions 8 and 10.

Race 2 -- Will consist of the odd-numbered positions, starting with position 7 from single-car qualifying. The results of Race 2 shall determine the odd-numbered positions in the starting field, starting with position 11. The top two finishers will transfer to Race 3 and start in positions 7 and 9.

Race 3 -- Will consist of positions 1 through 6 from single-car qualifying plus the first- and second-place finishers from Races 1 and 2 to determine the pole winner and the first five rows of the starting grid.
(Reference Here)

As far as the race is concerned, IndyCar, with its patchwork of television broadcasting of points paying races will have Iowa Corn Indy 250 presented by DEKALB be presented by the network general broadcast outlet of ABC and its affiliates. Anytime IndyCar can appear on general broadcast versus cable only outlets increases access and should be the major consideration for fan base expansion going forward post unification.

The lack of televised coverage (Cable Only or General Broadcast) for the 150 Laps of qualifications racing (more than half of the number of laps to be run in the race itself on Sunday), seems really counter-productive to fan interest development, especially when one includes the complexity of the 3 Heat Race format.

The race will also be available on IMS Radio Network affiliates, XM/Sirius 211, indycar.com (IMS Radio Network and Timing & Scoring) and INDYCAR 13 (in-car cameras, Timing & Scoring, IMS Radio Network).

... notes from The EDJE

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**Article first posted as Qualifications For The Iowa Corn Indy 250 Requires Cheat Sheets at Motorsports Unplugged**

Iowa Corn Indy 250 Qualifications Explored And Explained

Andretti Autosport's Ryan Hunter-Reay take the win for a second oval race in a row. Penske Racing's Will Power retains the overall points lead after this ninth race which saw a high level of attrition. Image Credit: IICS

Iowa Corn Indy 250 Qualifications Explored And Explained

Tuned in to catch up on the #IOWA250 and this is what could be found on the average Twitter asset portal:

Breakthrough Racing @breakthruracing Aw, hell’s bells! RT @SSMIndy: We are officially in a holding pattern here at@iowaspeedway for the #Iowa250 due to a heavy rain shower.

Linda @greenfield7814Hope the rain stops quickly and we see a safe race #Iowa250 #Indycar

So, while we wait, this might be a good time to review how this group of 25 DW12′s powered with Chevy, Honda, and one lowly Lotus engine found themselves to be lined up in this order on the grid.

The IZOD IndyCar Series wanted to try something out to bring some excitement to the fans during qualifications on a small oval track like the one in Newton, Iowa represents … a banked 7/8th of a mile kidney-bean shaped oval. What the series management came up with was something that translated to be like the “Knock-Out” format that results in a “Firestone Fast Six” competition to set the first three rows of cars to start the race.
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Angie King @angiewarholWhatever the opposite of a rain dance is! RT @BHA: Looking for ideas to pass the time… anyone have suggestions?#Iowa250 #Indycar
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Here is the actual edited explanation from IZOD IndyCar Series issued yesterday before the Practice 2 session and the Heat Races:

Lap times from the second 45-minute Practice 2 session will set the qualification groups for the three heat races. The heat races of 30 laps each will set the starting lineup for the 250-lap race under the lights June 23 (Ganassi Racing’s Graham Rahal, Tony Kanaan and KV Racing Technology Racing teammate E.J. Viso will incur 10-grid spot penalties for unapproved engine changes – Simon Pagenaud of Schmidt/Hamilton Racing was later added to the list). Honda requested the engine change following the initial practice.

Heat Race 1 will consist of the even-numbered positions, starting with the 10th-quickest practice time overall, and determine the even-numbered positions in the starting field from 10th down.

Heat Race 2 will consist of the odd-numbered positions, starting with the ninth-quickest practice time overall, and determine the odd-numbered positions in the starting field from ninth down.

Heat Race 3 will consist of drivers ranked one through eight by the practice times registered in Practice 2 session. Results of Race 3 will determine the first four rows, with the winner taking the pole position.
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Team Barracuda – BHA @BHANot a bad idea! RT @JorgGrayChile: How about time the jetdryers around the track with a Jorg Gray watch? #iowa250
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Ash (アシュー) @racingAshReady to enjoy Saturday night, short track #IndyCar racing at@iowaspeedway on @NBCSN! First up, yesterday’s heat races. #IndyCar#Iowa250
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The top 1 through 8 positions are kind of like the Firestone Fast Six without any of that pesky “real-time” build up and transfer process found in “KnockOut” qualifying found on closed road/street courses.

This might have been really, really cool sounding in the executive offices of the IICS (or where-ever), but from afar, like fans in Los Angeles for example, this has them wishing to have dinner a little early just so they can miss Heat Race #3 in protest.

These West Coasters may have missed out on Practice #2 held hours earlier in the afternoon on Friday, a general session where the top 8 competitors were settled. The suspicion is that the fans out West may still have been at work.

The Heat Races (and Practice #2) were not televised or streamed so if one wanted to get a sense as to what happened, it was back to the less than dependable IMS Radio feed (tough to find a back-up) and the Timing and Scoring panel found at RaceControl.IndyCar.Com.
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ICFanVillage @ICFanVillageThe LIVE @NBCSports Pre-Race Broadcasts starts at 8pm in the@ICFanVillage with guests@RyanHunterReay and@justin_wilson! #Iowa250
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HinchOnTrack @hinchontrack -@iowaspeedway #iowa250@Hinchtown Severe thunderstorms have shut down on track activity…race fans stand by! Race supposed to start at 9…
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In qualifying, it looks as though:

1 -The core of all the Heat Races were set by the speeds registered during the Practice #2 session.

2 – All of the drivers that are challenging Will Power for the series points lead except for Pagenaud and Kanaan made it into the top 8 (first four rows) final Heat race tonight.

3 – The best that Kanaan will be able to qualify will be for P19 … he currently sits at P15 / The best that Pagenaud will be able to qualify will be for P9 … he currently sits at P21. These two drivers will have to out pace Barrichello, Tagliani, & Wilson to improve on their “odd-numbered” grid position. Kanaan won’t start higher than 19th because of a 10-grid spot penalty imposed for an unapproved engine change on the No. 11 GEICO/Mouser Electronics KV Racing Technology Racing car.

“I won this race starting from 15th,” Kanaan countered on a positive note.

4 – As far as the “even-numbered” grid positions are concerned – Rahal, who currently sits at P10 will be able to do no better than P20 if he is able to maintain his position. Rahal and Viso (P14) will incur 10-grid spot penalties for engine change-outs. Newgarden, Hildebrand, and Servia are the drivers expected to battle for P10.

This looks like one of these situations that one has to be in attendance in order to get into the full effect of this “Heat Race” grid battle. This has the feel that the excitement is already over because the top 8 positions have been filled … during a practice session which was probably missed by those who cared most about the importance it meant to the qualifications process – one hyphenated word … ANTI-CLIMATIC!

Christopher Estrada @estradawritingRAIN. Again. Grrr… #IndyCar #Iowa250

And ANTI-CLIMATIC this process was – Heat Race #1 everyone kept their station except toward the end of the 30 lap Heat, EJ Viso lost one position. This did not really matter to the grid because Viso wass on the list of engine change penalties.

Heat Race #1 Results – 30 LAPS:

Pos Driver Team/Car Time/Gap
1. Graham Rahal Ganassi DW12-Honda 9m00.6441s
2. Josef Newgarden Fisher DW12-Honda + 6.2134s
3. JR Hildebrand Panther DW12-Chevy + 6.5594s
4. EJ Viso KV DW12-Chevy + 7.4531s
5. Oriol Servia Panther/DRR DW12-Chevy + 8.3586s
6. Mike Conway Foyt DW12-Honda + 10.8144s
7. Ed Carpenter Carpenter DW12-Chevy + 13.4036s
8. Takuma Sato Rahal DW12-Honda + 18.5671s

Alexandra Prud @La_Lales -If the rain let us to race today… My pick for #IndyCar #Iowa250 is: 1.Andretti 2.Franchitti 3.Briscoe. Happy Sunday Night!

Heat Race #2 may have been a little more exciting if this were not for the fact that this Heat also had leading drivers that were to have a grid penalty assessed to them as well. Nice to see Kanaan do the best he could – Pagenaud has a poorly set up car but these DW12′s will be at the back tonight (or tomorrow) anyway.

Heat Race #2 Results – 30 LAPS:

Pos Driver Team/Car Time/Gap
1. Tony Kanaan KV DW12-Chevy 8m59.4932s
2. Alex Tagliani Herta DW12-Honda + 3.1255s
3. Rubens Barrichello KV DW12-Chevy + 6.0818s
4. Justin Wilson Coyne DW12-Honda + 7.9310s
5. Charlie Kimball Ganassi DW12-Honda + 10.0818s
6. Katherine Legge Dragon DW12-Chevy + 13.7490s
7. James Jakes Coyne DW12-Honda + 14.0032s
8. Simona de Silvestro HVM DW12-Lotus + 1 lap
9. Simon Pagenaud Schmidt DW12-Honda + 1 lap

TrueCarRacing @TrueCarRacingGetting corny here at the@iowaspeedway #Iowa250 waiting through the rain delay @IndyCar@emckone pic.twitter.com/sTNsfpnR (photo below)

Heat Race #3 did show the fan a little something since Marco Andretti, who started the race in P1 due to his fastest speed during the afternoon’s Practice #2 session, was passed on the outside twice – once by Dario Franchitti on LAP #8 and then by Helio Castroneves on LAP #16 of the 30 lap race.

Dario captured the pole position and the valuable point. This was a second best result for points leading Will Power since Dario is not the driver that poses the greatest threat at this time. If Hinchcliffe or Dixon got the extra point, this would bring either driver that much closer to start the second half of this 2012 IICS season.

Heat Race #3 Results – 30 LAPS:

Pos Driver Team/Car Time/Gap
1. Dario Franchitti Ganassi DW12-Honda 9m16.9203s
2. Helio Castroneves Penske DW12-Chevy + 1.4671s
3. Marco Andretti Andretti DW12-Chevy + 5.1884s
4. James Hinchcliffe Andretti DW12-Chevy + 5.9813s
5. Ryan Briscoe Penske DW12-Chevy + 6.5813s
6. Will Power Penske DW12-Chevy + 7.3542s
7. Ryan Hunter-Reay Andretti DW12-Chevy + 7.8433s
8. Scott Dixon Ganassi DW12-Honda + 9.2963s

Jane Ward Hamilton @jwardh Rain at #Iowa250 Meanwhile, back in Ohio it’s time to move the sprinklers.#Drought We need redistribution of rain.

Iowa Corn Indy 250 Starting Order:

1. Dario Franchitti Ganassi DW12-Honda
2. Helio Castroneves Penske DW12-Chevy
3. Marco Andretti Andretti DW12-Chevy
4. James Hinchcliffe Andretti DW12-Chevy
5. Ryan Briscoe Penske DW12-Chevy
6. Will Power Penske DW12-Chevy
7. Ryan Hunter-Reay Andretti DW12-Chevy
8. Scott Dixon Ganassi DW12-Honda

9. Tony Kanaan KV DW12-Chevy*
10. Graham Rahal Ganassi DW12-Honda*
11. Alex Tagliani Herta DW12-Honda
12. Josef Newgarden Fisher DW12-Honda
13. Rubens Barrichello KV DW12-Chevy
14. JR Hildebrand Panther DW12-Chevy
15. Justin Wilson Coyne DW12-Honda
16. EJ Viso KV DW12-Chevy*
17. Charlie Kimball Ganassi DW12-Honda
18. Oriol Servia Panther/DRR DW12-Chevy
19. Katherine Legge Dragon DW12-Chevy
20. Mike Conway Foyt DW12-Honda
21. James Jakes Coyne DW12-Honda
22. Ed Carpenter Carpenter DW12-Chevy
23. Simona de Silvestro HVM DW12-Lotus
24. Takuma Sato Rahal DW12-Honda
25. Simon Pagenaud Schmidt DW12-Honda*
* Will take 10-place engine change penalty before start
(ht: autosport.com)
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Michael Williamson @michaelw2000 “@curtcavin: .@michaelw2000 IndyCar runs first, then Lights. #indycar” Cool! Thanks!
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Motorsport @motor_racing -#irl #indycar IndyCar institutes starter camera (The Associated Press): NEWTON, Iowa (AP) The IndyCar Series is … yhoo.it/PS6M4N
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Harmonic Family @HarmonicFamily -track drying is complete, pre race about to begin #iowa250
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Andretti Autosport @FollowAndretti-As the track dries, the estimated green flag for the #Iowa250 is at 9:30PM local time.
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Edmund Jenks @TheEDJE - @TheEDJE Predicts a #DW12 Chevy will win#iowa250 Motorsports Unplugged Radio @rahalracing 620 WDAE – 7:15AM ET bit.ly/L1RBDu #indycar
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Edmund Jenks @TheEDJE-@TheEDJE predicts Hinchcliffe if no Penske #iowa250 Motorsports Unplugged Radio @rahalracing 620 WDAE – 7:15AM ET bit.ly/L1RBDu
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UPDATES To Follow …

Will Power Survives The Iowa Corn Indy 250

In a race that had mostly confusion mixed with anticipation before its rain delayed start due to and experiment to the qualifying process, Will Power escapes from a race that had the most attrition of any race, in this 2012 season, with the points lead.

Results - 250 laps:

Pos  Driver               Team/Car                     Time/Gap
 1.  Ryan Hunter-Reay     Andretti DW12-Chevy     1h43m39.3031s
 2.  Marco Andretti       Andretti DW12-Chevy         + 0.1103s
 3.  Tony Kanaan          KV DW12-Chevy               + 2.7245s
 4.  Scott Dixon          Ganassi DW12-Honda          + 3.0075s
 5.  Simon Pagenaud       Schmidt DW12-Honda          + 3.8468s
 6.  Helio Castroneves    Penske DW12-Chevy           + 5.3061s
 7.  Rubens Barrichello   KV DW12-Chevy               + 5.9890s
 8.  Ed Carpenter         Carpenter DW12-Chevy        + 6.9856s
 9.  Graham Rahal         Ganassi DW12-Honda          + 7.1607s
10.  Justin Wilson        Coyne DW12-Honda              + 1 lap
11.  Charlie Kimball      Ganassi DW12-Honda           + 2 laps
12.  Takuma Sato          Rahal DW12-Honda             + 3 laps
13.  James Jakes          Coyne DW12-Honda             + 5 laps
14.  Simona de Silvestro  HVM DW12-Lotus               + 6 laps

Retirements:

     Katherine Legge      Dragon DW12-Chevy            243 laps
     Alex Tagliani        Herta DW12-Honda             207 laps
     James Hinchcliffe    Andretti DW12-Chevy          195 laps
     Ryan Briscoe         Penske DW12-Chevy            178 laps
     Josef Newgarden      Fisher DW12-Honda            178 laps
     Mike Conway          Foyt DW12-Honda              123 laps
     Oriol Servia         Panther/DRR DW12-Chevy        98 laps
     JR Hildebrand        Panther DW12-Chevy            95 laps
     Will Power           Penske DW12-Chevy             67 laps
     EJ Viso              KV DW12-Chevy                 67 laps
     Dario Franchitti     Ganassi DW12-Honda             0 laps

Read MORE Here

… notes from The EDJE

Will Power's Rally In The Valley - IZOD IndyCar Series Race 14 of 18

Penske Racing teammates (Power, Castroneves, and Briscoe) hold the line against the rest of the field during the double-file start of the Indy Grand Prix of Sonoma. Image Credit: Richard Dowdy via IZOD IndyCar Series


Will Power's Rally In The Valley - IZOD IndyCar Series Race 14 of 18

From the command of "Drivers, start your engines" and the audio of "Row 1, Hot" - "Row 2, Hot" - "Row 3, Hot" - and etc. one felt that this was the race that would keep the 2011 points race alive as the sound of the Honda engines echoed throughout the Sonoma valley. Power, at 46 points down to Dario Franchitti, had to win and keep the Target Chip Ganassi drivers (Franchitti and Dixon) as far down in the order that was legally possible. Qualifications gave a blessing to Will and the rest of the Penske Racing team with a 1-2-3 starting position with Helio Castroneves, and Ryan Briscoe acting as protection to any erosion to the running order from the starting grid of the race.

From the very drop of the Green Flag starting the race, Ryan Briscoe kept the Red Target team cars behind both Will Power and Helio Castroneves which allowed Power to pull comfortably away.

All went smoothly through to the first round of pitstops by the leaders with eight cars opting to come in earlier for a change of sequence. On lap 5 of 75, Tony Kanaan running back at P25, was the first to opt for a change to Red tires and a change in pit sequence followed by Takuma Sato, JR Hildebrand, Simon Pagenaud, Charlie Kimball Danica Patrick, and Vitor Meira.

First, Mike Conway from P7 on Lap 22 of 75 began the process with Tagliani, who had just been passed by Graham Rahal due to poor handling in on Lap 23. Hinchcliff, Ryan Hunter-Raey, Helio Castroneves on LAP 25.

Lap 26 has Dixon taking on primary Black tires. Next on Lap 26 Power comes into the pits, leaving Briscoe leading until Lap 28.

Briscoe comes out in sequence with all three Penske Racing cars holding station at 1-2-3 keeping Dario Franchitti and Scott Dixon behind. This may seem boreing to some, but clean and precise racing to a strategy toward a championship is just that ... predictable and boreing. Gotta' love it if ya' like a tight season points race.

Top 10 after 32 laps of 75 sees Power, Castroneves, Briscoe, Franchitti, Dixon, Pantano, Hinchcliffe, Viso, Bourdais, and Rahal.

On TV, Robin Miller reports that there are about 130,000 people in attendance as opposed to about 30,000 sitting in the stands at the last race (oval) in Loudon, New Hampshire.

Fan stands are full of people who traveled to the middle of nowhere to see a premiere open-wheel race for season championship points. Image Credit: Shawn Gritzmacher via IZOD IndyCar Series

Robin asked Randy Bernard, CEO of IZOD IndyCar Series, if Sonoma was on the schedule for next year and Randy reported that the schedule has not been finalized and that the people who run Infineon Raceway have not committed to the race fee as yet.

Lap 39, Tony Kanaan stalls out on pit lane and appears to have an engine stuck at full throttle. KV Racing Technology's Kanaan retires from the race.

TWEET - Fieldof33 Paul Dalbey
Thank God for side-by-side. If hate to miss watching the sand grow.

TWEET - pressdog Bill Zahren
Nailed it. "@spikerogan: @99forever You could make nachos from scratch and not miss a thing. By scratch I mean from growing the corn. lol"

Lap 45 of 75 has Will Power on the radio complaining about lapped traffic not clearing out of the way. It has him braking at odd times and kicking up some blue tire smoke.

All of the drivers are looking to get back on REDS again on the next pit sequence. Oriol Servia takes on a set and fuel on lap 47 - good to go all the way to the end.

Before this next round of stops, P1 Power leads P4 Franchitti by about 32 seconds. Castroneves pits on Lap 49 ... Dixon in for REDS ... 25 laps to go and more stops with side-by-side passing in the pits.

Lap 50 Will Power comes in with little traffic to contend with ... comes out ahead of Castroneves and all is right in the Penske world with Briscoe leading.

All top 10 drivers complete pit stops and are good to the end - Lap 53 P1 to P10 are Power, Castroneves, Briscoe, Franchitti, Dixon, Pantano, Hinchcliffe, Bourdais, Viso and Rahal.

TWEET - SBPopOffValve Mr. Pop Off Valve
Wally Dallenbach says (correctly) that Sonoma is a blast to drive. Doesn't make it any easier on the spectators.

TWEET - Fieldof33 Paul Dalbey
@SBPopOffValve I believe the Sr Official has discretion to mandate Power pull over, let Castroneves by, and drive rest of race 1 handed.

Lap 56 Marco Andretti brushes JR Hildebrand's rear tire causing a rear flat for the driver from the Sonoma area.

TWEET - AllenWedge Allen Wedge
Can't wait for the eventual Panther Racing press release saying JR got Marco'd

TWEET - PantherRacing Panther Racing
Marco & Hildebrand make contact for the second consecutive year @InfineonRaceway .... looked like that was on Marco to me. But I'm biased.

TWEET - toomuchracing Pat W
They want to bring Belle Isle back... that's even worse for IndyCar. I liked the ALMS there though

TWEET - 99forever Steph@MoreFrontWing
Interesting. TK refutes Cavin's story and says he's not signed at KV. #indycar

Ten laps remain and it is still Power, Castroneves, Briscoe, Franchitti, Dixon, Pantano, Hinchcliffe, Bourdais, Rahal, and Viso.

YELLOW Flag - Ho-Pin Tung slides out of control and into a tire wall - look out for a crazy restart as the cars get bunched up. Power looses about a 20 second cushion to the YELLOW Flag full course caution.

TWEET - IndyCar IZOD IndyCar Series
Full course Yellow for incident in Turn 9 involving #88 Ho-Pin Tung cot.ag/d3QLxP

Restart cones are clearly defined and Power looses an advantage as to surprising the rest of the drivers as to when he will apply the fuel peddle to take off on the GREEN Flag.

Penske is sitting at 1-2-3 so, to be frank, who knows what Will Power is talking about.

TWEET - IndyCar IZOD IndyCar Series
Back to Green @InfineonRaceway. cot.ag/d3QLxP

GREEN, GREEN, GREEN LAP 70 - Will Power gets the advantage and everyone comes back into station. Franchitti baubles and Dixon holds everyone else off.

TWEET - shagers Shane Rogers
Double file restarts are the best thing for these mickey mouse road courses. Drivers hate them, but they are awesome.

TWEET - SBPopOffValve Mr. Pop Off Valve
SATO DOES NOT RESPECT HIS BRAKES.

Saavedra and Conway get together and up the dirt bank on the last lap pushing hard for position.

Top 10 with four laps to go - Power, Castroneves, Briscoe, Franchitti, Dixon, Pantano, Bourdais, Hinchcliffe, Rahal, and Viso.

Verizon Penske Racing's Will Power takes the Checkered Flag at Infineon Raceway, Sears Point, in the Sonoma Valley. Image Credit: Chris Jones via IZOD IndyCar Series

Will Power gets maximum points and wins the race. This will be his 5th win of the season and the most by any driver this season. Gains 20 points on the event and moves from being 46 points to 26 points down with only four races to go in the season.

TWEET - toomuchracing Pat W
Chequered. Snoozefest. Power and his teammates held station for the duration, followed by Dario and Dixon.

TWEET - racintoday Jim Pedley
Power Cruises At Infineon bit.ly/rhPlBs #indycar

TWEET - toomuchracing Pat W
Great drive by Pantano to take 6th in Wilson's car after not racing these cars for 6 years (and only then he did two starts).

TWEET - FollowAndretti Andretti Autosport
Checkered flag at @InfineonRaceway. Ryan 11, Mike 17, Danica 21, Marco 24.

TWEET -in dy44 Matt Archuleta
Ckrd Power Helio Briscoe Dario Dixon Pantano Bourdais Hinch Rahal Viso RHR Servia Plowman Ana Saavedra Pagenaud Conway Sato Jakes Tagliani

Will Power jumps once again into the wall of confetti at the winner's podium. Image Credit: Chris Jones via IZOD IndyCar Series

TWEET - JamieLittleESPN Jamie Little
Penske sweeps the podium at Sonoma and Sweeps the @NASCAR and @IndyCar this weekend!

Post race interview has Power saying, "It was just a perfect race. This one is pretty important. I have been unbelievably motivated after a few bad races this season. I knew that Verizon Team Penske was better than this as a team and we came here with a good set-up, finished strong and we are on the right track now ... Verizon baby, we are back on top now!"

Fingers Up - Will Power was fined $30,000 for a gesture not too dis-similar to this gesture. That's right, Will was fined about $15,000 a finger when he showed his initial displeasure toward Brian Barnhart and the folks at Race Control at the decision to restart the race at Loudon, New Hampshire. At least Power has the sense of humor to mimic his fine-able action of a couple of weeks ago. Image Credit: Chris Jones via IZOD IndyCar Series

Next up, a shiny, brand new temporary street course in Baltimore will have all teams searching for what will work. Penske had the "special sauce" here at Infineon Raceway but will they be able to maintain the edge and keep Dario and the Target Chip Ganassi racing team at bay. Thank God that hurricane Irene decided to show up on the East coast this week so everything remains on track for the season.

... notes from The EDJE


[Article first published as Will Power's Rally In The Valley - IZOD IndyCar Series Race 14 of 18 on Technorati]

Indy Grand Prix of Sonoma Qualifications - Penske's Day At Sears Point

Penske Racing's Will Power as he navigates his way around the corners of Infineon Raceway while achieving his sixth PEAK Performance Pole Award of the season. Image Credit: Chris Jones via IZOD IndyCar Series

Indy Grand Prix of Sonoma Qualifications - Penske's Day At Sears Point

Qualifications for Indy Grand Prix of Sonoma by Team Penske, and in particular - Will Power, the session result could not have been planned any better. If Power has any hope of gaining points back on series points leader, Dario Franchitti, he needed to get the pole position and get as many places between himself and Dario to give any cushion at all.

Well, Team Penske came through with superior car preparation and an amazing performance put in by Helio Castroneves and Ryan Briscoe to capture P2 and P3 on the grid in front of Franchitti for the race. For Dario's part, he did the best he could to maintain the first starting position behind Team Penske, leading Will Power going into this weekend by 46 points with only five races remaining (Road/Street cources at Sonoma, Baltimore, and Twin Ring Motegi followed by two oval courses in Kentucky and Las Vegas).

In earning his sixth PEAK Performance Pole Award of the season, combined with Franchitti starting fourth in the No. 10 Target Chip Ganassi Racing car, Power gains one point in the season championship to bring the pre-race season points deficit to 45.

Will Power smokes 'em up in capturing the pole position in qualifying at Sonoma. Image Credit: Chris Jones via IZOD IndyCar Series

"Qualifying is very important here," said Power, who recorded a quick lap of 1 minute, 18.6017 seconds on the 2.303-mile, 12-turn road course in the Firestone Fast Six. "A Penske 1-2-3 is good, and we have two guys between the Target cars. This qualifying session was as perfect as it could go. We were able to put a perfect lap together that was mistake-free and hit all of the sectors and that was the key to posting the quickest lap.

"[The championship] is going to come down to who is going to make the least amount of mistakes," continued Power, driver of the No. 12 Verizon Team Penske car. "Dario still has a reasonable lead, but that could turn around in one weekend. Obviously, if we have a bad weekend and he is 70 points ahead with four weekends to go it will be tough ... near impossible.

"We need to execute this weekend and just keep finishing ahead of Dario. It's as simple as that."
(quotes ht: indycar.com)

Will Power accepts the Peak Pole Award for the second time in as many years. Image Credit: Chris Jones via IZOD IndyCar Series

Fact remains, if Will Power believes he has any chance at all, he needs to be the best at Road/Street courses and the Oval courses the balance of the season to prove he deserves to become a first time champion.

With the top 10 cars covered by only a half of a second on a 2.52 mile 12 turn road course in qualifications, the proving begins here at Infineon Raceway, Sears Point in Sonoma, California.

Pos -- Driver -- Team -- Time -- Gap
1. Will Power Penske 1m18.602s (Q4)
2. Helio Castroneves Penske 1m19.092s (Q4) + 0.490s
3. Ryan Briscoe Penske 1m19.111s (Q4) + 0.505s
4. Dario Franchitti Ganassi 1m19.164s (Q4) + 0.545s
5. Scott Dixon Ganassi 1m19.389s (Q4) + 0.788s
6. James Hinchcliffe Newman/Haas 1m19.545s (Q4) + 0.853s

7. Mike Conway Andretti 1m18.939s (Q3) + 0.337s
8. Sebastien Bourdais Dale Coyne 1m18.971s (Q3) + 0.370s
9. Ernesto Viso KV 1m19.072s (Q3) + 0.471s
10. Ana Beatriz Dreyer & Reinbold 1m19.110s (Q3) + 0.508s
11. Giorgio Pantano Dreyer & Reinbold 1m19.241s (Q3) + 0.640s
12. Alex Tagliani Sam Schmidt 1m19.803s (Q3) + 1.202s

13. Graham Rahal Ganassi 1m19.331s (Q2) + 0.729s
14. Marco Andretti Andretti 1m19.378s (Q2) + 0.770s
15. Martin Plowman AFS/Sam Schmidt 1m19.379s (Q1) + 0.776s
16. Takuma Sato KV 1m19.384s (Q1) + 0.719s
17. James Jakes (Dale Coyne) 1m19.474s (Q1) + 0.873s
18. Oriol Servia Newman/Haas 1m19.396s (Q1) + 0.739s
19. Ryan Hunter-Reay Andretti 1m19.640s (Q1) + 1.039s
20. JR Hildebrand Panther 1m19.465s (Q1) + 0.864s
21. Tony Kanaan KV 1m19.727s (Q1) + 1.125s
22. Simon Pagenaud Dreyer & Reinbold 1m19.564s (Q1) + 0.962s
23. Sebastian Saavedra Conquest 1m19.752s (Q1) + 1.150s
24. Ho-Pin Tung Sam Schmidt Dragon 1m19.589s (Q1) + 0.988s
25. Danica Patrick Andretti 1m19.785s (Q1) + 1.184s
26. Charlie Kimball Ganassi 1m19.835s (Q1) + 1.233s
27. Ed Carpenter Sarah Fisher 1m20.627s (Q1) + 2.713s
28. Vitor Meira Foyt 1m20.121s (Q1) + 1.837s
(chart ht: autosport.com)

The race will be broadcast Sunday Aug. 28 on VERSUS at 4 pm ET and IMS Radio.

... notes from The EDJE


[Article first published as Indy Grand Prix of Sonoma Qualifications - Penske's Day at Sears Point on Technorati]

The Trials Of The Indy T-Team Ten

Mario Dominguez and the Pacific Coast Motorsports crew during qualifications at Indy. Image Credit: Andy Sallee (2008)

The Trials Of The Indy T-Team Ten

To say the least, watching the developments of the drivers and teams that were able to transition (T-Team) to the Indy Racing League (IRL) and compete for the championship of the IndyCar Sreies (ICS) has been an exercise in hope spiced with a healthy dose of frustration.

To the fan who favored the former ChampCar Series and its history legacy to CART and the spirit of competition this form of racing and equipment provided through the years, the process has had its moments.

When the announcement for the merger was first announced back on February 21, 2008, the obvious hope for fans and teams alike was that all of the teams and drivers would just port over and plug-in to the IndyCar Series and all racing life would go on for the duration of the 2008 season. As the reality set in after about thirty days, ChampCar was lucky to end up with as many drivers and teams that have now ended up at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway to compete in the world’s largest staged racing spectacle.

Before the merge announcement of unification of ChampCar and IndyCar, the ChampCar Series was about to field 12 teams supporting the talents of 20 drivers in an 18 race event season. What remains going into the fourth race of the season, the Indianapolis 500 set to be held on May 25, 2008, are 6 teams supporting the talents of 10 drivers with one team and driver making this race its first of the 2008 ICS season (Pacific Coast Motorsports and Mario Dominguez).


The Indy T-Team Ten


Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing (NHL)
Graham Rahal – No Sponsor (Charity, Hole-In-The-Wall-Camps)





Justin Wilson – McDonald’s







KV Racing Technology (KVRT)
Will Power – Aussie Vineyards





Oriol Servia – Plantronics







Dale Coyne Racing (DCR)
Bruno Junqueira – Z-Line





Mario Moraes – Sonny’s BBQ







Conquest Racing (CR)
Enrique Bernoldi – No Sponsor





Jaime Camara – No Sponsor







HVM - former Minardi USA (HVM)
EJ Viso – PDVSA (Citgo Distribution)







Pacific Coast Motorsports (PCM)
Mario Dominguez – Visit Mexico City





(spotter's guide images credit: indycar.com)

Leading up to the month of May has been a series of set backs and break throughs. Set backs included a slow transition of teams announcing their participation, a parts shortage on the aerodynamics packages for the Dallara chassis delivered to the T-Teams as reported by Graham Rahal and the Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing team during the run-up to the first race of the season at Homestead. Writer Robin Miller later confirmed that this parts shortage would effect the T-Teams only.

Many experts predicted that the T-Teams and drivers will be at such a disadvantage this 2008 season that no team or driver could expect to win (let alone place, or show) a race until about the sixth to tenth race of the season at the earliest. On the second race of the season, the very same Graham Rahal who could not field a car due to the availability of parts at Homestead, came back and won the race through the streets of Saint Petersburg. The race was hampered by rain, but this did not dampen the spirits of the ChampCar loyal having a breakthrough this soon into the season.

The third round featured the last time the ChampCar teams would be racing exclusively together at Long Beach. Due to scheduling and the quickness of the merger agreement, the IndyCar established teams would race at Twin Ring Motegi, Japan (Honda’s, the IndyCar Series engine supplier, home track) while the ChampCar teams raced in their equipment, the Panoz DP01, for IndyCar points. Highlights include being able to see Paul Tracy, Jimmy Vasser, Alex Figge, Frank Montagny, Roberto Moreno, Nelson Philippe, and Alex Tagliani (to mention a few drivers) turn laps in an American Open Wheel racing environment for the last time in the 2008 season.

Winners included, the LBGP fans, Will Power (1st Place), Frank Montagny (one and only ChampCar race and placed 2nd), Mario Dominguez (3rd Place) … and probably the biggest winner of all, Pacific Coast Motorsports. The only professional open wheel racing team located on the West coast was able to take a third place win by Mario Dominguez and put together a two year sponsorship deal with the “Visit Mexico City” tourism bureau and show up at Indianapolis for the month of May. Further, Mario was able to keep the points he earned with his third place finish at Long Beach and apply them to the rest of the ICS season.

The two weeks leading up to qualifications at Indy also has its moments for the T-Team Ten.

The fastest lap times from this group were fairly competitive, however, these are only one-lap lap times and qualifying requires four consecutive laps. Justin Wilson (224.123), Graham Rahal (224.033), Will Power (223.550), Oriol Servia (223.440), EJ Viso (222.643), Bruno Junqueira (222.390), Mario Moraes (221.475), Enrique Bernoldi (220.645). Graham Rahal brushed the wall a couple of times while drifting up out of the corners, Viso and Power had crashes but all three were able to repair and field their cars in the show.

Mario Dominguez and the Pacific Coast Motorsports team were assigned the garage spaces between 14-time Indy 500 race winner Penske Racing and Ganassi Racing, which owns the top two spots on the grid after the opening qualifying session last weekend. Team owner, Tyler Tadevic’s reaction to this fortunate garage draw, "We're the meat in an ‘oh-(expletive)’ sandwich."

Mario has suffered from a lack of speed and two crashes into a wall. The first crash came earlier in the week as he was exiting the pits … cold tires spun his car out and he hit the inside wall at low speed.

Image Credit: Andy Sallee (2008)

The second crash happened just before the qualifying session today in warm-up practice. Since Pacific Coast Motorsports does not have a back-up car, a position most of the T-Teams are in being first time players in this series, they are hoping to be able to put the chassis back together and get it into the show. With only one spot open at the writing of this sentence and the team reporting that they have all of the parts they need, hope springs eternal.

Image Credit: Andy Sallee (2008)

At ten minutes after Two in the afternoon L.A. time, the following T-Team drivers are in the show with 32 of the 33 positions filled:

POS. Driver (Speed), Team, Sponsor
13 Graham Rahal (222.531), NHL, No Sponsor
15 Bruno Junqueira (222.330), DCR, Z-Line
16 Justin Wilson (222.267), NHL, Mc Donald’s
23 Will Power (221.136), KVRT, Aussie Vineyards
25 Oriol Servia (220.767), KVRT, Plantronics
26 EJ Viso (220.356), HVM, PDVSA
28 Mario Moraes (219.716), DCR, Sonny’s BBQ
29 Enrique Bernoldi (219.422), CR, No Sponsor
30 Jaime Camara (219.345), CR, No Sponsor

Marty Roth, who's best finish at Indy was 26th and best start, 29th, lines up with his Black, un-sponsored car, at just a couple of minutes left in the session, and goes out and puts together four laps at 215.506 as the slowest car in the closed 33 car field. The weather is forecast to be spotty with rain and drizzle. If the weather bypasses the track, "Bump Day" will be just that for tomorrow, Sunday.

The drivers left wanting to make it into the field include Mario Dominguez and PCM ... still insisting that the car will be put back together and if the weather holds off, they can make it into the show. The fastest speed Mario Dominguez was able to achieve in practice - 220.597. Mario said in an interview in the PCM garage that the Angel that is part of the logo of his "Visit Mexico City" sponsored car is the Angel of Independence, and that this Angel will get them back out on the track and qualify for the 92nd Indy 500.

Columna de la Independencia" in Reforma financial district. Image Credit: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Mario will have to duke it out with AJ Foyt IV (220.972), Tony George's Vision Racing, Eli Lily, and "Mad" Max Papis (221.358), Rubicon Racing, LifeLock. Max Papis crashed earlier today and was able to make a deal with Dreyer Reinbold Racing for Milka Duno’s 2007 car but the car needed to have modifications to the tub in order to have the car make it through technical inspection tomorrow … Team owner and Indy legend, Sam Schmidt has dubbed the car “Frankenstein”.

Dominguez is so popular in his homeland that Mexico City is installing more than 90 Jumbotron television screens at sporting venues and parks around the city just for the race.

Image Credit: Andy Sallee (2008)

"This is not just a project of this team any more," Dominguez said. "This is the project of a country."

A final report has a potential of Jaques Lazier making a deal to field another teams back-up car ... it is said that anything can happen at Indy, and it usually does. No pressure.

Until tomorrow ...

... notes from The EDJE