INDYCAR: Hunter-Reay Relishing Upcoming Title Defense

IndyCar

INDYCAR: Hunter-Reay Relishing Upcoming Title Defense

"If you know me, you know I’m most comfortable being the underdog," RHR told SPEED.com. "I don’t mind if people aren’t talking about me for the championship."

Marshall Pruett | Posted March 20, 2013

Can Ryan hunter-Reay score back-to-back IndyCar titles? The American tells SPEED.com he's ready to hold onto his No. 1 position and doesn't mind being overlooked as a title favorite. (Photo: Marshall Pruett)

For reigning IZOD IndyCar Series champ Ryan Hunter-Reay, the new, daunting and unfamiliar journey of trying to hold onto his first title is about to begin.

It took RHR nine seasons of trying in Champ Car and the IndyCar Series to achieve his goal of earning No. 1 status, and it shouldn’t be a surprise to learn the 32-year-old is ready to maintain his place atop the standings.

“Beyond winning races your goal is to win a championship, obviously; that's the end goal,” he told SPEED.com. “So, yeah, we are thinking about it, but it's not like there's anything different about how we're going to approach it. We need to go win races. So that's the first step. We need to be consistently at the front with ourselves in a position to win.

“Certainly, we’re working on bettering ourselves from last year; we have to be much better than we were last year to win the championships. It’s just a natural evolution and development of racing. Everything is always progressing. We have to stay ahead of that curve.”

RHR has complete confidence in his Andretti Autosport team—one that underwent a few engineering changes during the off-season. Coming off of a successful two day test last week at Barber Motorsports Park, the Champ believes the four-car program is poised for great things in 2013.

“I think the engineering additions have been huge with Craig Hampson and Mike Cannon, and I’m really looking forward to how everyone is going to work together. We've already done it at Sebring and the Barber open test and I'm very encouraged by what I've seen. The energy’s great and the talent level in the engineering department is certainly there. I'm very happy for the additions we made,” he said.

“At one point it seemed like we had taken a big step back. Just a few weeks later it feels like we took a few steps forward. It's amazing how quickly things can change. And I think they've changed for the better.”

RHR’s plans and outlook for 2013 isn’t any different than what he practiced during his championship run: Avoid mistakes; score points; be consistent; win whenever possible and the rest will sort itself out.

But as much as his stated goal is to continue going about things the same way, it’s hard to believe RHR’s mindset will remain completely unchanged heading into this weekend’s season opener at St. Petersburg, or for the rest of the 18 races left on the calendar.

RHR will carry the familiar colors of DHL and Sun Drop on his Chevy-powered Andretti Autosport entry this year. (Photo: Marshall Pruett)

After spending more than a decade pursuing his dream of becoming and Indy car champion, surely there’s an extra gear to come—either mentally or from inside the cockpit—to prevent a long list of drivers from knocking him off his newfound perch.

The Andretti Autosport driver is universally liked within the paddock, and especially among his fellow drivers, but there are still a few rivals who aren’t convinced RHR is championship material.

Sure, he won the 2012 IndyCar title, but was it earned by dominating the series or by his closest competitors faltering at the finish line?

RHR has heard those whispers and knows it’s part of the game—something to be expected from those trying to rattle his cage, but he says it will take more than words to break his focus.

“That’s how my whole career’s been, really,” he said. “I like it that way. I really don't care how they rate me. We'll let the races and the results do the speaking and hopefully we’re going to be a huge factor again in the championship this year, and I think we will be.”

In terms of contrasting styles, Team Penske’s Will Power is known for his electrifying runs to pole position and dominating performances on road and street courses. RHR, by comparison, might not have as many superlatives thrown his way, but has perfected an approach that pays greater dividends across an entire season.

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