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IndyCar
INDYCAR: Helio Erupts After Last Lap Penalty
For all of the on-track excitement that was missing from Motegi, Team Penske's Helio Castroneves made up for it after the event by blasting Race Control.
Helio Castroneves isn't afraid to speak his mind. (LAT)
For all of the on-track excitement that was missing from the 63-lap Indy Japan The Final event at Motegi on Sunday, Team Penske's Helio Castroneves more than made up for it off-track an hour later.
With A.J. Foyt Racing driver Vitor Meira spun off in Turn 3 on the Lap 61 restart, INDYCAR Race Control left the Brazilian sitting trackside with two laps to go and used a local waving yellow flag to alert the rest of the field of the situation.
Race Director Brian Barnhart was overheard on the radio giving multiple warning for drivers not to pass in Turn 3, but Castroneves, who was locked in a fight for seventh place with JR Hildebrand, passed the rookie in Turn 3 on the final lap and held the position as he crossed the finish line.
Drawing the wrath of the series, Castroneves soon found his name erased from seventh place in the final standings. Moved to the final position on the lead lap, Castroneves found being relegated to 22nd a bitter pill to swallow.
The most serious implication for Castroneves came in the form of helping Ganassi's Dario Franchitti to close the gap to Power in the championship standings.
Prior to his penalty, Franchitti was classified in ninth, placing him 13 points behind power. With Castroneves' corrected finishing position, the gap was reduced to 11 points.
His first quote on the subject to Versus, which was then distributed in the official IndyCar Series race report package, offered a glimpse of what was brewing inside the open-wheel veteran.
"This is certainly not the way I wanted to end the final IndyCar race in Japan," he said. "First, I have to thank Hitachi for coming onboard this weekend. It was an honor to carry their name on our Team Penske car while racing in Japan. I would also like to thank all the Japanese fans. They have been incredibly supportive over the years and it's unfortunate that we will not be racing here again in the immediate future. I have great memories of racing at this place. Now, for today's race - I am very disappointed in the result and the decision to penalize us at the end. I have said it before - the decisions by Race Control have been very inconsistent, this season especially, and I think today was just another example. I am really upset about it and I think it is very unfortunate for the fans and my fellow drivers. Now, we move on to Kentucky and we will be working hard to finish the season strong on the No. 3 Team Penske car."
With the fallout of freaking out in front of a live television audience at Edmonton in 2009 in mind, Castroneves made sure to keep his emotions under control on Versus.
But away from the cameras, Castroneves couldn’t resist letting the world know his true feelings, and thanks to the unfiltered nature of Twitter, he went from clearly displeased on TV to slightly reckless via social media with his slam on Barnhart.
"It is sad to see one person being responsible for bringing down an entire series," he wrote. "Brian Banhart is inconsistent and even changes rule book when is convenient for him, and his own personal interests. In the same race in International television he penalizes some but not others. Making the famous @paultracy 's words mine : Brian Barnhart is a circus clown! Very disappointed for finishing 7th. and being put to 22nd. This is just ABSURD !!! Just expressing my feelings right now!"
Driving for the ultra-polished and uber-reserved Roger Penske, Castroneves’ public outburst marks the second instance of a Team Penske driver bringing embarrassment to The Captain in little more than a month.
Championship leader Will Power’s famous double-bird salute to Race Control after the rainy melee at Loudon continues to be a source of amusement and interest, and coupled with Castroneves’ classic meltdown after being stripped of his win for blocking at Edmonton two years ago and today's Twitter transgression, Penske’s open-wheel operation continues to make national headlines as IndyCar's most controversial team.
(On a lighter note, Power’s salute to Race Control inspired a Japanese fan to paint her fingernails in the colors of Power’s No. 12 Verizon Wireless-sponsored car, but in honor of his Loudon incident, she had the numbers of his car painted on two very special fingers—the number 1 on the middle finger of her right hand, and the number 2 on the middle finger of her left hand—which, when extended Loudon-style, formed No. 12… Power posed for a picture with her, but the image will not be made available for distribution…)
PHOTOS: Click Here or on the image below to view INDYCAR: Motegi 2011.
Marshall Pruett is SPEED.com's Auto Racing Editor, covering IndyCar and sports cars. He also contributes to Road & Track and Racecar Engineering. Follow him on Facebook and Twitter.
With A.J. Foyt Racing driver Vitor Meira spun off in Turn 3 on the Lap 61 restart, INDYCAR Race Control left the Brazilian sitting trackside with two laps to go and used a local waving yellow flag to alert the rest of the field of the situation.
Race Director Brian Barnhart was overheard on the radio giving multiple warning for drivers not to pass in Turn 3, but Castroneves, who was locked in a fight for seventh place with JR Hildebrand, passed the rookie in Turn 3 on the final lap and held the position as he crossed the finish line.
Drawing the wrath of the series, Castroneves soon found his name erased from seventh place in the final standings. Moved to the final position on the lead lap, Castroneves found being relegated to 22nd a bitter pill to swallow.
The most serious implication for Castroneves came in the form of helping Ganassi's Dario Franchitti to close the gap to Power in the championship standings.
Prior to his penalty, Franchitti was classified in ninth, placing him 13 points behind power. With Castroneves' corrected finishing position, the gap was reduced to 11 points.
His first quote on the subject to Versus, which was then distributed in the official IndyCar Series race report package, offered a glimpse of what was brewing inside the open-wheel veteran.
"This is certainly not the way I wanted to end the final IndyCar race in Japan," he said. "First, I have to thank Hitachi for coming onboard this weekend. It was an honor to carry their name on our Team Penske car while racing in Japan. I would also like to thank all the Japanese fans. They have been incredibly supportive over the years and it's unfortunate that we will not be racing here again in the immediate future. I have great memories of racing at this place. Now, for today's race - I am very disappointed in the result and the decision to penalize us at the end. I have said it before - the decisions by Race Control have been very inconsistent, this season especially, and I think today was just another example. I am really upset about it and I think it is very unfortunate for the fans and my fellow drivers. Now, we move on to Kentucky and we will be working hard to finish the season strong on the No. 3 Team Penske car."
With the fallout of freaking out in front of a live television audience at Edmonton in 2009 in mind, Castroneves made sure to keep his emotions under control on Versus.
But away from the cameras, Castroneves couldn’t resist letting the world know his true feelings, and thanks to the unfiltered nature of Twitter, he went from clearly displeased on TV to slightly reckless via social media with his slam on Barnhart.
"It is sad to see one person being responsible for bringing down an entire series," he wrote. "Brian Banhart is inconsistent and even changes rule book when is convenient for him, and his own personal interests. In the same race in International television he penalizes some but not others. Making the famous @paultracy 's words mine : Brian Barnhart is a circus clown! Very disappointed for finishing 7th. and being put to 22nd. This is just ABSURD !!! Just expressing my feelings right now!"
Driving for the ultra-polished and uber-reserved Roger Penske, Castroneves’ public outburst marks the second instance of a Team Penske driver bringing embarrassment to The Captain in little more than a month.
Championship leader Will Power’s famous double-bird salute to Race Control after the rainy melee at Loudon continues to be a source of amusement and interest, and coupled with Castroneves’ classic meltdown after being stripped of his win for blocking at Edmonton two years ago and today's Twitter transgression, Penske’s open-wheel operation continues to make national headlines as IndyCar's most controversial team.
(On a lighter note, Power’s salute to Race Control inspired a Japanese fan to paint her fingernails in the colors of Power’s No. 12 Verizon Wireless-sponsored car, but in honor of his Loudon incident, she had the numbers of his car painted on two very special fingers—the number 1 on the middle finger of her right hand, and the number 2 on the middle finger of her left hand—which, when extended Loudon-style, formed No. 12… Power posed for a picture with her, but the image will not be made available for distribution…)
PHOTOS: Click Here or on the image below to view INDYCAR: Motegi 2011.
Marshall Pruett is SPEED.com's Auto Racing Editor, covering IndyCar and sports cars. He also contributes to Road & Track and Racecar Engineering. Follow him on Facebook and Twitter.
2013 INDY 500 Practice
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