INDYCAR: Loudon Rewind

IndyCar

INDYCAR: Loudon Rewind

We analyze the INDYCAR rulebook to see if the series can alter race results, the paddock pushes back on Race Control and The Golden Bowling Ball goes to ...

Marshall Pruett | Posted August 16, 2011

What looked like a Sunday cruise to Victory Lane for Dario Franchitti turned into the most contentious finish to an IndyCar race in many years. Now we'll see how the rules and protests are handled. (LAT)

Maybe it’s because I’ve watched too many episodes of The First 48 that the first thoughts to emerge after the WowThisIsEmbarrasing.com 225 at Loudon centered on gathering evidence and seeking the truth.

What took place in Race Control? Did things go down just as Race Control said it did?

Determining the winner of the Loudon IndyCar race comes down to answering one question: Was the track green at the time Oriol Servia crossed the start/finish line?

OK, maybe there are a few questions that need to be answered. Actually, there are 21 questions we came up with, starting with…

With a fresh copy of the 2011 INDYCAR rules provided to SPEED.com from the series to work from, reading through all relevant sections and also doing keyword searches within the document ('timing,' 'scoring,' 'yellow,' 'flag,' 'green,' 'restart,' etc) to find relevant rules elsewhere in the document, here's a Q&A on what we've determined:

What happened?

The Loudon race went under caution on Lap 206 for rain, and cars continued to circulate behind the pace car until the decision was made by Race Control to return to racing with 10 laps to go (Lap 215).

That restart was aborted due to cars not being correctly lined-up, and the field circulated to try it again one lap later, leaving nine laps to go (Lap 216).

At the end of that lap, cars accelerated for the restart, some spun and crashed, and Oriol Servia crossed the line first, completing that lap which signaled eight laps to go (Lap 217).

Cars then circulated behind the pace car until a red flag was ordered, where the field pulled onto pit lane and stopped. Timing and Scoring showed there were five laps to go when the race was stopped (Lap 220).

Who works in Race Control?

Brian Barnhart, President of Competition and Racing Operations, is in charge, and Tony Cotman, Program Manager of the 2012 Car and Al Unser Jr., Driver Coach and Consultant, act as advisors/stewards alongside Barnhart.

What activates a caution period for the IndyCar Series on an oval?

The Track Condition Radio (TCR) system.

Rule 7.1.B.3 states:

"All Cars must use the INDYCAR-supplied TCR and wiring harness without modification."

Which is followed by 7.1.B.3.a:

"Oval Events - The TCR signals a yellow condition."

The TCR alert system can be found in two areas: Around the track with flashing yellow lights, and in the cockpit of the Indy cars. At Loudon, an additional flashing yellow light is mounted atop a pole at start/finish, making it easy to determine when the light is on or off.

Who turns the TCR system on and off?

It is turned on and off by Race Control.

While the exact interval between the system’s activation and deactivation isn’t known, it appears to work almost instantaneously. In other words, if Race Control turns the yellow light system on (or off), it happens immediately—there’s no delay.

What’s the process, per the rulebook, on how a race transitions from a caution period to green-flag racing?

Rulebook section 7.5, Race Restart, sub-section A.2 states:

"When the Track is clear for racing, the Safety Car will assist the field in preparing for a restart. At the appropriate time, the flashing lights will be turned off, indicating intent to restart the Race the next time across the starting line, and the Safety Car will accelerate away from the field, and pull into the designated location. The Race leader is required to maintain pace lap speed until reaching a point designated by INDYCAR to accelerate smoothly back to racing speed and the green condition will then be declared. The Senior Official in his discretion shall determine if the leader or any other Car fails to restart the Race as directed. The Senior Official in his discretion shall determine the type and timing of any penalty as he deems appropriate. Such decision is not subject to protest and/or appeal."

According the 7.5.A.2, all of the conditions were satisfied for the race to go green. The lights were turned off just before cars drew parallel with the impact barrier in front of the outside pit wall, and the green flag was waved.

Rule 7.5.A.2 also clearly states the possible penalties for failing to meet the restart criteria, and as noted, Race Control chose to abort the start on Lap 215, but gave the command to the starter to wave the green flag on Lap 216.

So the start where cars crashed in the rain wasn't aborted?

No, not according to the rulebook and actions carried out by Race Control.

Did the race go green?

Yes.

Although Danica Patrick was already spinning at the time the green flag waved, the TCR system was deactivated and the green flag briefly waved. From the time the green flag waved to when Race Control activated the TCR system, approximately three seconds elapsed. In other words, three seconds of green-flag racing took place.

Who was leading at the end of that three-second green period?

Oriol Servia.

What was the running order at the exact moment the TCR system was activated?

Servia, Ryan Hunter-Reay, and Scott Dixon.

Does the starter waving the yellow flag moments after the crash started have any official bearing?

No.

There are no provisions in the rulebook for automatic yellows or starter-induced yellows. The start of a crash does not automatically mean the race is under caution, nor does the flagger waving the yellow mean anything official. Race Control must decide to go yellow and manually activate the TCR system for a caution period to start.

OK, so the race was successfully restarted according to the rules, meaning the TCR system was turned off, the green flag order was given and carried out, three seconds of green-flag racing took place and then the TCR system was turned on when the crash took place. How do you determine who was officially leading?

Those answers are also a bit tricky, but the rulebook does a good job of defining things if we take a deeper look.

How does INDYCAR score its races?

It uses an electronic system that keeps track of cars through a transponder system. The track has a system that is embedded across the start/finish line that picks up the unique radio signal given off by the transponder attached to every car when it passes over start/finish. Most tracks also have timing 'loops' embedded throughout the track to give sector times.

Rule 7.2.B.1 states:

"The electronic scoring system is the primary scoring record. INDYCAR will record the physical sequence in which each Car crosses the start/finish line, including in pit lane. 2. At Oval Events, the serial scoring system is a backup scoring record."

The rulebook then expands on the topic in section 7.2.C, stating:

"Start/Finish Line - The scoring of Cars shall begin at the moment when the timing transponder of the lead Car reaches the starting line and the declaration of the green or yellow condition has been given by the Senior Official."

It seems to spell out in easy terms that scoring will take place once the lead car crosses the start/finish timing line under green or yellow conditions.

Using 7.2.B.1 and 7.2.C, it appears the cars that took the green for three seconds crossed the finish line under yellow and should be scored as they crossed the timing line, not when the TCR was activated.

So why weren’t they credited with the lap if they crossed the finish line and did what the rulebook says is required to be scored?

That is a good question.

SPEED.com’s request to interview Brian Barnhart and/or another member of Race Control was turned down by the series due to the ongoing protests over the Loudon race results.

Section 7.2.D, Lap Credit, offers a concise answer in sub-section 7.2.D.1 as to what needs to be done by a car to have a lap counted:

"A Car will be credited with a lap when its timing transponder crosses the start/finish line after completing one entire lap of the Track with two wheels of the Car having remained on the Racing Surface at all times, as determined from the scoring records."

Using 7.2.D.1 as a guideline, the cars that kept two wheels on-track and rolled across the start/finish line at the end of Lap 216 to start Lap 217 should have been scored in whatever position they happened to hold at that time.

The crashed cars that were parked on the straight, according to 7.2.D.1, met most of the criteria, but did not complete the entire lap, therefore should not be credited with completing that lap.

So isn't the order of the field frozen the moment the yellow comes out?

We could not find that rule in the rulebook. Rules 7.2.B.1 and 7.2.C provide the only definition on the topic.

What do they go on to set the running order in the event of a crash? Is it how the car crossed the last timing loop in one of the corners?

We could not find that rule in the rulebook. Rules 7.2.B.1 and 7.2.C provide the only definition on the topic.

How long did the race actually last?

The drivers circulated the track 220 times from when the race started to when it was red-flagged. Timing and scoring showed 220 laps completed while the cars were parked on pit lane during the red flag, and ABC, IMS Radio and all other relevant media outlets noted the race had completed 220 laps.

But INDYCAR changed all of its results a little bit later to say it only lasted 215 laps.

Yes they did.

So INDYCAR has erased all traces of Laps 216-220 from its records?

Yes, at least publically, but some of the teams were smart enough to capture all of the official series data and records showing 220 laps had been completed before INDYCAR altered those results.

But didn’t the field complete three more laps after the crash under the yellow flag?

Yes they did.

Does the red flag have any influence on the final outcome of the Loudon race or the race results INDYCAR has modified?

No.

Rule 7.1.B.4.j.ii states:

"If a Race is stopped by the declaration of a red condition and more than 50% of the scheduled number of laps have been completed by the Race leader, the Race may be considered complete in INDYCAR’s discretion, and final standings will be determined by ranking all Cars in order by total laps completed and sequence of completion through the last official Race lap."

So going by the rulebook, it appears all of the conditions for Laps 215-220 to be considered completed and scored were met successfully, making Lap 220 the last official lap, right?

Yes.

According to rules 7.2.B.1, 7.2.C, and 7.2.D.1, it triggered rule 7.1.B.4.j.ii to declare Lap 220 as the ‘last official Race lap.’

Who led lap 220?

Ryan Hunter-Reay.

It wasn't Oriol Servia?

No, the series moved Hunter-Reay ahead of Servia under yellow.

Can they do that?

Well, it certainly happened.

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