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Race 2 Quick Thoughts-A Sense of Normalcy

October 3, 2020 thepitwindow

Photo of Will Power by Chris Jones, Indycar

Will Power takes the pole and dominates the race. Team Penske sweeps the weekend. with two wins and two front row starts. Power and Josef Newgarden combined to lead 109 of the 160 laps. This weekend brought a sense of normalcy back. This how the IMS road course works.

A victory at St. Pete would make Power a 40 race winner. It has been more than 20 years since two 40 race winners were active in the series.

Not every race can be as great as Friday’s, and I wasn’t expecting today’s race to be that good. It is quite a feat to lead every lap in a race, especially one with such a long pit stop delta.

It was nice to see Simon Pagenaud move up to the top 10 after an awful friday. He still hasn’t figured out qualifying. Pagenaud’s struggles in qualifying have been one of the most puzzling things about this season.

Colton Herta made an impressive late charge to close in on Power. It made the last few laps interesting.

Alexander Rossi had his best weekend of the year with two podium finishes.

Jack Harvey has three top 10s and one podium in four races on the IMS road course.

Scott Dixon’s struggles continue. His lead over Newgarden is just 32 points heading to St. Pete. The Florida street course is not one of Dixon’s better tracks. He just needs to keep Newgarden in sight during the race.

I don’t know how Indycar determines race distances, but I think 5 more laps might have made the race more intriguing.

If the fans had a vote, the Harvest Grand Prix would be an annual event.

Finally, huge thanks to Roger Penske, Doug Boles, and the entire staff at IMS for their efforts to create a safe environment for fans to be to attend the races this weekend. The fans who live in Indianapolis needed this, and they will remember and appreciate this weekend for a long time.

Tire Designations Corrected

October 3, 2020 thepitwindow

Race 2 Tire Choices

October 3, 2020 thepitwindow

Power on Pole for Race 2

October 3, 2020 thepitwindow

Will Power is back home again in Indiana. He took the pole position for this afternoon’s Race 2 of the Harvest Grand Prix. Power has won on this track three times in the May edition of the IMS road course race.

Colton Herta starts second. Yesterday’s winner, Josef Newgarden, starts 9th and points leader Scott Dixon starts 15th. Rinus VeeKay, yesterday’s pole winner, starts 14th.

Power’s pole is his 4th of the year and 61st of his career. He could tie or pass Mario Andretti’ s career mark of 67 poles sometime next season.

Yesterday was Fun- Let’s Do It Again

October 3, 2020 thepitwindow

Saturday at IMS:

8 am- Gates Open (gates 1 & 9)

8:30-10 Indianapolis 8 Hour/GT World Challenge America pre qualifying

10:20-10:50 Indycar Qualifying -Race 2

11:10-11:50 TC America/TCR Race 2

12:10-1:10 Indianapolis 8 Hour/GT World Challenge America Qualifying

2:30-5:00 Indycar Harvest Grand Prix Race 2 (NBC)

5:30-5:45 Indianapolis 8 Hour/GT World Challenge America Pole Shootout

Can Indycar top yesterday’s race? Some attribute the great racing to the weather conditions. Today’s high is expected to be 64 degrees. race time temperature should be around 61 with partly cloudy skies. No rain is in the forecast.

Temperatures for qualifying will be in the low 50s.

From last night:

Harvest Grand Prix Race 1- Quick Thoughts

https://thepitwindow.blog/2020/10/02/harvest-grand-prix-race-1-quick-thoughts/

This is an important day for Scott Dixon. He needs to regain some momentum back and try to extend his points lead over Josef Newgarden. The lead has shrunk from 116 points going into Mid Ohio to just 40 after yesterday.

Can Rinus VeeKay continue to be a factor today? He should be fun to watch.

Indycar, Chevy, and Honda have a major announcement at 11:50 this morning regarding the new hybrid engine.

I’ll be back after qualifying with a quick report. Enjoy the day.

Harvest Grand Prix Race 1- Quick Thoughts

October 2, 2020 thepitwindow1 Comment

Photo- Dana Garrett, Indycar

Wow! What a good race. This was arguably the best Indycar race I have seen on the IMS road course. There were battles for the lead, fights for position throughout the field, and the drama of the points leader losing ground. The winning pass also came on track. Race 2 has a tough act to follow.

The early battle for the lead between Colton Herta and Rinus VeeKay was a glimpse into Indycar’s future. The two drivers have an average of less than two years’ experience combined. Herta’s move to grab the lead at the start was topped by VeeKay’s move to regain the top spot the next lap.

Rinus VeeKay leads Colton Herta early in the harvest Grand Prix

I feel for Marco Andretti. He qualified well and was having a great race until the lap 79 fire which ended his day. He was in contention for a top 10.

Josef Newgarden is now within 40 points of Scott Dixon for the series championship. Dixon, who said his car struggled on black tires, needs to finish ahead of Newgarden tomorrow. he still could clinch the title after Race 2, but it looks more likely the title will be decided in St.Pete. All other drivers are eliminated from title contention.

Newgarden has 3 wins for the year, and Dixon has four. Dixon hasn’t won since Road America Race 1 on July 11.

Will Power had another issue in the pits but he recovered to finish sixth.

It was unusual to see Simon Pagenaud struggle and pick up only six spots from his 22nd starting position.

Will Power would do well on a dirt track. His slide and save coming off the last turn was exciting and showed great car control.

I’m not sure how close to the 10,00 fan limit the Speedway was today, but it appeared to be near the limit. Tomorrow might be the biggest crowd of the weekend and should reach the allowed capacity.

Race 1 May Depend on Setup

October 2, 2020 thepitwindow

Photo: Graham Rahal in fall colors. Indycar, Chris Owens

Good morning from the northwest media annex. Today’s schedule:

7:30 Gates open (Gates 1 and 9)

10:20-11;35 Indianapolis 8 Hour Practice

1:40-3:10 Indianapolis 8 hour Practice

3:30 Opening Ceremonies for Harvest Grand Prix Race 1

4: 00 Green flag (TV- USA Network beginning at 3:30)

Today’s race may hinge on who has the setup right. several drivers yesterday complained of loose cars. Today’s forecast is for a high of 59 degrees. Tire degradation may be lower than normal, which could negate an alternate pit strategy.

Rinus VeeKay on his way to his first career pole. Indycar photo by Chris Jones

It was a big day for rookies. Alex Palou led the practice session and Rinus VeeKay won the pole. Could we see a rookie win today? Josef Newgarden is my favorite to win right now, but I would not count out Colton Herta, Alexander Rossi, or Jack Harvey. Why should this race be normal?

Yesterday proved a long held theory of mine. The air inside Indianapolis Motor Speedway is lighter and fresher than the air outside. I felt the weight of 2020 lift from my shoulders the moment I entered the gate. It was great to be back inside the track and to see cars running again.

The place is immaculate. The speedway is cleaner and brighter than it has been in many years. The museum building gleams in the sunlight.

It was a decent crowd for a Thursday afternoon. Everyone was smiling just because they were at the track. I have heard ticket sales have gone very well for the rest of the weekend.

I enjoyed the sports car races as well. Jarrett Andretti just missed a podium finish in the first race. In the second race, the Andretti Autosport entry recovered from an early penalty to finish fifth. I need to read up on this series more.

VeeKay on Pole, Newgarden Gains a Point on Dixon

October 1, 2020 thepitwindow

Photo from Rinus VeeKay Twitter feed

Rinus VeeKay won the pole for Race 1 of the Harvest Grand Prix late this afternoon with a lap at the end of the session of 1:09.6903. Josef Newgarden lead Group 1 with a time of 1:10.4706 to earn the second starting spot on the grid. Newgarden did inch one point closer to Scott Dixon by leading his group.

The Dutch rookie’s first career pole is the fourth for Ed Carpenter Racing at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Ed Carpenter has won the pole for the Indianapolis 500 three times. ECR joins Team Penske as the only two teams who have poles in both the 500 and on the road course.

Group 1 never had the chance to run on red tires. With about four minutes left in the session Takuma Sato, the first driver of the group to come in to the pits to switch to the faster rubber, spun into the sand trap at the north end of the track as the other teams were changing tires. Time ran out under the red flag.

Group 2 ran incident free. Colton Herta led most of the way. His best lap on black tires was just 0.5 seconds slower than Newgarden’s fast time. It appeared he would easily beat Newgarden when he switched to the alternate tire. But his last lap was 0.0145 seconds than VeeKay’s final run.

Pagenaud’s Qualifying Woes Continue

Simon Pagenaud, who has had difficulty in qualifying all season, will start 22nd Friday. Pagenaud has not let hislow starting position affect his racing. He has won one race after starting last. Pagenaud is 8th in the standings.

Inauspicious Start for Returning Vets

The returning veterans-Sebastien Bourdais, Helio Castroneves, James Hinchcliffe, and Sage Karam- struggled in practice and qualifying. Bourdais starts 16th, Castroneves 19th, Hinchcliffe 18th, and Karam 21st.

The lineup: