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IndyCar
INDYCAR: Power, Chevrolet Beat Grid Penalty To Score Long Beach Win
Chevrolet's 11 10-spot grid penalties should have handed the race on a platter to Honda, but Will Power, Chevy and Team Penske disagreed.
How much madness, crashing and odds-defying action can you pack into 85 laps of racing? IZOD IndyCar Series fans got their answer today on the streets of Long Beach.
When it was over, Team Penske showed what speed, patience and crafty strategy can deliver as Will Power, who started 12th, more than overcame the 10-spot grid penalty he and the rest of the Bowtie runners faced.
"After last week, you can never say never," said the enthused Aussie who won his second consecutive race of the season and took over the points lead.
"I thought it’d be very tough to win. I had to save so much fuel to get there. I used some fuel to get around people, (Penske Racing President) Tim [Cindric] told me you have to save fuel, and be as quick as I could doing so."
The win was Power's 17th of his Indy car career, and after picking his way through the field--and coolly watching as many of his rivals found the wall or each other--the 31-year-old make it all look rather easy.
In terms of demoralizing wins, this could rank among the best delivered by the open-wheel phenom.
Power's win came after a thrilling 10-lap duel with his former Team Australia Champ Car teammate Simon Pagenaud, who finished second ahead of James Hinchcliffe.
Pagenaud, who pitted on Lap 47--just past the halfway point--needed a caution to stretch his 18.5-gallon fuel tank to the finish after assuming the lead on Lap 58.
When it became obvious he'd have to make a splash-and-go, the Frenchman put the hammer down, laying down a series of laps that were more than a second faster than the Team Penske driver.
Pagenaud extended his lead over Power to 18.8 seconds before diving for the pits on Lap 69, and upon his return, carved as much as 1.7 seconds per lap out of Sato in second. Once past the Japanese driver, Pagenaud set his sights on Power, who was 14.2 seconds up the road after the Lap 69 stop.
By Lap 80, the French ace had reeled Power in and sat 5.8 seconds back and the duel was officially on. The final laps saw the gap shrink to .867 seconds as Power crossed the finish line with his friend beginning to fill his mirrors.
Despite the carnage, which included a Helio Castroneves-inspired traffic jam at the hairpin on the final lap (after the leaders had gone through), Pagenaud was gracious in defeat, but wondered aloud what the finish would have looked like if the race was 86 laps long.
“It was fantastic," he said. "The car was great from the beginning. I’m glad we’re giving (Team Penske) a run for their money. If we had another lap…”
The mercurial Schmidt Hamilton Motorsports driver leaves Long Beach third in points, 21 behind Castroneves and 27 behind Power, and served as Honda's only serious threat once the race got to Lap 30, giving the manufacturer a lot to think about after all 11 Chevrolet-powered cars served a 10-spot grid penalty due to "unapproved" engine changes leading into the weekend.
Chevy-powered Hinchcliffe, who started 16th, drove a smart and clean race, and was promoted to third after his teammate, Ryan Hunter-Reay, was penalized 30 seconds after spinning Takuma Sato out of third with one lap remaining.
“The guys did a great job on the [timing] stand," said the personable Canadian. "It’s a great feeling to get the first podium for Go Daddy. That's what makes IndyCar racing so cool; you can start 16th and still have a crack at (a podium finish) if you play the strategy right.”
PHOTOS: Click Here or on the image below to view INDYCAR: Long Beach Saturday 2012
Despite being turned by his former Firestone Indy Lights teammate, Kanaan was credited with fourth at the finish after making the most of a three-stop strategy.
“We had a great race," said a rather relived Kanaan, who entered the weekend last in points. "I drove fast the entire time. I passed a lot of cars, so I’m extremely happy.”
Like Hunter-Reay, Castroneves was penalized 30 seconds for setting off the Lap 85 melee.
The top 5 was completed by home state driver JR Hildebrand. The Panther Racing pilot had possibly the most impressive year-to-year turnaround after fighting a wickedly ill-handling car to place 17th in 2011.
"I’m pumped for the Panther Racing National Guard guys," he said. "We had our own trials and tribulations throughout this weekend so far, with the penalty and I slapped the wall in qualifying and screwed up our starting spot anyway. The car was really good, the guys made some changes this morning and it really livened the car up and we had great traction all day. The guys picked a two-stop strategy and we had really good pit stops and I ended up having to save more fuel at the end of the race than some of the guys around us and we lost a couple spots. But we’re just stoked to be able to come from that far back through some on-track passes and good strategy. And what a great job by Team Chevy after we had to make an engine change. We’ll take this and move on to Brazil.”
With the race seemingly handed to Honda before the green flag waved, the fact that Chevrolets finished 1st, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 9th, 12th, 13th and 14th today (Marco Andretti finished 25th after a wild Lap 22 crash with Graham Rahal)--less than an hour from where Honda's IndyCar engines are built--it surely won't sit well with the proud members of the Japanese marque.
When it was over, Team Penske showed what speed, patience and crafty strategy can deliver as Will Power, who started 12th, more than overcame the 10-spot grid penalty he and the rest of the Bowtie runners faced.
"After last week, you can never say never," said the enthused Aussie who won his second consecutive race of the season and took over the points lead.
"I thought it’d be very tough to win. I had to save so much fuel to get there. I used some fuel to get around people, (Penske Racing President) Tim [Cindric] told me you have to save fuel, and be as quick as I could doing so."
The win was Power's 17th of his Indy car career, and after picking his way through the field--and coolly watching as many of his rivals found the wall or each other--the 31-year-old make it all look rather easy.
In terms of demoralizing wins, this could rank among the best delivered by the open-wheel phenom.
Power's win came after a thrilling 10-lap duel with his former Team Australia Champ Car teammate Simon Pagenaud, who finished second ahead of James Hinchcliffe.
Pagenaud, who pitted on Lap 47--just past the halfway point--needed a caution to stretch his 18.5-gallon fuel tank to the finish after assuming the lead on Lap 58.
When it became obvious he'd have to make a splash-and-go, the Frenchman put the hammer down, laying down a series of laps that were more than a second faster than the Team Penske driver.
Pagenaud extended his lead over Power to 18.8 seconds before diving for the pits on Lap 69, and upon his return, carved as much as 1.7 seconds per lap out of Sato in second. Once past the Japanese driver, Pagenaud set his sights on Power, who was 14.2 seconds up the road after the Lap 69 stop.
By Lap 80, the French ace had reeled Power in and sat 5.8 seconds back and the duel was officially on. The final laps saw the gap shrink to .867 seconds as Power crossed the finish line with his friend beginning to fill his mirrors.
Despite the carnage, which included a Helio Castroneves-inspired traffic jam at the hairpin on the final lap (after the leaders had gone through), Pagenaud was gracious in defeat, but wondered aloud what the finish would have looked like if the race was 86 laps long.
“It was fantastic," he said. "The car was great from the beginning. I’m glad we’re giving (Team Penske) a run for their money. If we had another lap…”
The mercurial Schmidt Hamilton Motorsports driver leaves Long Beach third in points, 21 behind Castroneves and 27 behind Power, and served as Honda's only serious threat once the race got to Lap 30, giving the manufacturer a lot to think about after all 11 Chevrolet-powered cars served a 10-spot grid penalty due to "unapproved" engine changes leading into the weekend.
Chevy-powered Hinchcliffe, who started 16th, drove a smart and clean race, and was promoted to third after his teammate, Ryan Hunter-Reay, was penalized 30 seconds after spinning Takuma Sato out of third with one lap remaining.
“The guys did a great job on the [timing] stand," said the personable Canadian. "It’s a great feeling to get the first podium for Go Daddy. That's what makes IndyCar racing so cool; you can start 16th and still have a crack at (a podium finish) if you play the strategy right.”
PHOTOS: Click Here or on the image below to view INDYCAR: Long Beach Saturday 2012
Despite being turned by his former Firestone Indy Lights teammate, Kanaan was credited with fourth at the finish after making the most of a three-stop strategy.
“We had a great race," said a rather relived Kanaan, who entered the weekend last in points. "I drove fast the entire time. I passed a lot of cars, so I’m extremely happy.”
Like Hunter-Reay, Castroneves was penalized 30 seconds for setting off the Lap 85 melee.
The top 5 was completed by home state driver JR Hildebrand. The Panther Racing pilot had possibly the most impressive year-to-year turnaround after fighting a wickedly ill-handling car to place 17th in 2011.
"I’m pumped for the Panther Racing National Guard guys," he said. "We had our own trials and tribulations throughout this weekend so far, with the penalty and I slapped the wall in qualifying and screwed up our starting spot anyway. The car was really good, the guys made some changes this morning and it really livened the car up and we had great traction all day. The guys picked a two-stop strategy and we had really good pit stops and I ended up having to save more fuel at the end of the race than some of the guys around us and we lost a couple spots. But we’re just stoked to be able to come from that far back through some on-track passes and good strategy. And what a great job by Team Chevy after we had to make an engine change. We’ll take this and move on to Brazil.”
With the race seemingly handed to Honda before the green flag waved, the fact that Chevrolets finished 1st, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 9th, 12th, 13th and 14th today (Marco Andretti finished 25th after a wild Lap 22 crash with Graham Rahal)--less than an hour from where Honda's IndyCar engines are built--it surely won't sit well with the proud members of the Japanese marque.
INDYCAR BRAZIL
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