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Post by René on Jul 23, 2023 10:15:49 GMT
Great race!
Don't know why but I always like this Iowa race on the short oval and obviously so does Joseph Newgarden. His fifth win on this track (should have been six if it wasn't for that broken driveshaft last year). McLaughlin was close but never really a threat. Newgarden was so in control, only mechanical failure could stop him. Also a strong race from O'Ward in third who's becoming an expert on this track like Newgarden.
On to race II.
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Post by Carl on Jul 24, 2023 0:59:55 GMT
René, Well said! Both Iowa races were great. With his fifth oval track win in a row, Newgarden joined an elite pair of Indycar legends (Al Unser and AJ Foyt). Foyt's amazing record of 7 consecutive wins could be next for Josef, who says he simply has a natural affinity for one to one and a half mile oval tracks. I don't really like paved ovals, but the smaller ones are often competitive. Indycar deactives push to pass on oval tracks, so every approach and every pass is honest and hard won. An interesting insight to the Indycar power structure is that with 175 laps run, Penske, Ganassi and Andretti all had three cars in the top 12, Arrow McLaren had two and the extraordinary Dale Coyne outperformed his budget again with future star David Malukas. Near the end, the leaderboard showed the longest tenured veterans, Ryan Hunter-Reay and Ed Carpenter, at the very back with the three rookie drivers, indicating a changing of the guard in progress. Disaster was narrowly avoided as a huge Bundt cake intended for AJ Foyt was jarred loose and rolled onto the track. A nonchalant Foyt said he was delighted when no-one hit the cake and plans to eat it.
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Post by René on Jul 24, 2023 9:49:45 GMT
Yep, Race II was another cracker!
Josef had to start a little further back but I just knew that if his car was good he would win. He had so much more confidence and speed compared to everyone else, impressive. When Power and McLaughlin were battling for the lead and tried to pass back markers, Josef came from behind and passed them all in almost one move, Power, McLaughlin and the back markers! The only other guy who made moves like that was Pato O'Ward but his Arrow McLaren was no match for the Penskes. Alex Palou did perfect damage limitations by finishing a strong third. Enjoyed this a lot.
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Post by René on Aug 5, 2023 9:46:27 GMT
Nashville Grand Prix Back on a street circuit and this time on the challenging streets of Nashville, Josef Newgarden's home town. A unique track with the two long straights over the bridge and tight corner sections on both sides of the river. Safety cars guaranteed. Will Power fastest in FP1. 
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Post by Carl on Aug 5, 2023 21:55:08 GMT
Qualifying may or may not happen in Nashville. Rain is forecast for the rescheduled time, so here are the times from the final practice session. Car Number Lap Time / Interval Speed 1. Sweden Marcus Ericsson Chip Ganassi Racing 8 1'31.7999 82.353 2. Netherlands Rinus van Kalmthout Ed Carpenter Racing 21 +0.8911 81.561 3. Australia Will Power Team Penske 12 +1.0168 81.451 4. New Zealand Scott McLaughlin Team Penske 3 +1.3107 81.194 5. New Zealand Marcus Armstrong Chip Ganassi Racing 11 +1.3768 81.136 6. New Zealand Scott Dixon Chip Ganassi Racing 9 +1.7545 80.809 7. United States Ryan Hunter-Reay Ed Carpenter Racing 20 +2.3581 80.291 8. United States Josef Newgarden Team Penske 2 +2.6295 80.060 9. Spain Alex Palou Chip Ganassi Racing 10 +3.2153 79.566 10. Argentina Agustin Canapino Juncos Hollinger Racing 78 +3.2875 79.506 11. Mexico Patricio O'Ward Arrow McLaren 5 +3.5097 79.320 12. United States Colton Herta Andretti Autosport 26 +3.5673 79.273 13. United States Graham Rahal Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing 15 +3.6130 79.235 14. Sweden Linus Lundqvist Meyer Shank Racing 60 +3.9478 78.958 15. Denmark Benjamin Pedersen A.J. Foyt Enterprises 55 +4.1494 78.792 16. Canada Devlin DeFrancesco Andretti Autosport 29 +4.1758 78.770 17. United Kingdom Callum Ilott Juncos Hollinger Racing 77 +5.2300 77.914 18. United States Kyle Kirkwood Andretti Autosport 27 +6.2273 77.121 19. United States Santino Ferrucci A.J. Foyt Enterprises 14 +6.2662 77.091 20. Ray Robb Dale Coyne Racing 51 +6.2768 77.083 21. Brazil Helio Castroneves Meyer Shank Racing 06 +6.8701 76.619 22. United Kingdom Jack Harvey Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing 30 +6.9092 76.589 23. United States David Malukas Dale Coyne Racing 18 +6.9281 76.574 24. Sweden Felix Rosenqvist Arrow McLaren 6 +7.1885 76.373 25. Denmark Christian Lundgaard Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing 45 +11.0458 3.8573 73.508 26. United States Alexander Rossi Arrow McLaren No time 7 27. France Romain Grosjean Andretti Autosport No time 28
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Post by Carl on Aug 6, 2023 4:42:18 GMT
After all my careful spacing and editing of final practice leaders, the rain stopped for qualifying! I petitioned Davidson County Superior Court, asking intervention to force Indycar to acknowledge my time and effort by adopting final practice results as the starting grid. The court ruled that because Roger Penske owns Indycar and voted for Trump, whereas I own one car and did not, they will rule in his favor.
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Post by René on Aug 6, 2023 10:31:51 GMT
After all my careful spacing and editing of final practice leaders, the rain stopped for qualifying! I petitioned Davidson County Superior Court, asking intervention to force Indycar to acknowledge my time and effort by adopting final practice results as the starting grid. The court ruled that because Roger Penske owns Indycar and voted for Trump, whereas I own one car and did not, they will rule in his favor. Are you sure Roger Penske doesn't own the court as well? Owning one car and not voting for Trump sounds very sensible to me. Pole position for Scott McLaughlin! 1. SCOTT MCLAUGHLIN, Team Penske, 1'14.6099 2. PATRICIO O'WARD, Arrow McLaren, +0.3296 3. COLTON HERTA, Andretti Autosport, +0.6317 4. ALEX PALOU, Chip Ganassi Racing, +0.6363 5. DAVID MALUKAS, Dale Coyne Racing, +1.2604 6. ROMAIN GROSJEAN, Andretti Autosport, +1.3822 7. WILL POWER, Team Penske, +0.5285 8. KYLE KIRKWOOD, Andretti Autosport, +0.5542 9. JOSEF NEWGARDEN, Team Penske, +0.8763 10. ALEXANDER ROSSI, Arrow McLaren, +0.9612 |
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Post by René on Aug 7, 2023 16:19:43 GMT
Great race and a very deserved win for Kyle Kirkwood. His second career win, he's certainly a star for the future. And only two safety cars this time, unbelievable but certainly better for the race. Actually strange how strong McLaughlin was all weekend in the Penske Chevy with pole position and second in the race and how Josef Newgarden in the same car did not really compete for the win. Still a good 4th place finish but that was behind Alex Palou who now seems almost certain for the title.  |
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Post by Carl on Aug 7, 2023 19:47:13 GMT
Great race and a very deserved win for Kyle Kirkwood. His second career win, he's certainly a star for the future. And only two safety cars this time, unbelievable but certainly better for the race. Actually strange how strong McLaughlin was all weekend in the Penske Chevy with pole position and second in the race and how Josef Newgarden in the same car did not really compete for the win. Still a good 4th place finish but that was behind Alex Palou who now seems almost certain for the title. René, Your description is excellent. Kyle Kirkwood has climbed the Andretti Autosport ladder high into the stars, McLaughlin is ascendant and Newgarden curiously struggles in the same powerhouse team. I like both Alexander and Rinus and thought their coming together was Rossi's fault. Oh well... The sensational performance was the first time drive of Linus Lundqvist, awesome all weekend! I hadn't realized the extent of Simon Pagenaud's concussive injury and hope he's cleared to return soon. Meyer Shank Racing should welcome Pagenaud when he's ready and replace Castroneves with the brilliant young Swede. Speaking of replacement wishes, Leigh Diffey, who would praise horse manure if told by NBC to do so, was gushing constantly about Nashville. It's my father's hometown too and a great city, but it's not paradise. Cheers, Carl |
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Post by René on Aug 11, 2023 19:02:28 GMT
Grand Prix of Indianapolis - Race 2 The second race on the Indianapolis Road Course and a surprising pole position for Graham Rahal, his first in six years! Teammate Christian Lundgaard will start from second making it a Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing 1-2. On the second row the Arrow McLarens of Alexander Rossi and Pato O'Ward.  Championship leader Alex Palou will start only from 9th but that is still quite good compared to p19 for Josef Newgarden!
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Post by Carl on Aug 11, 2023 21:07:19 GMT
Good for Graham! His father named him after Graham Hill, who won the Indy 500 in 1966. With fast cars and fierce drivers in the first several rows, the initial laps should be exciting
1. Graham Rahal Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Car #15 Lap time 1'10.1132 Average mph 125.232 2. Christian Lundgaard Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing #45 125.026 3. Alexander Rossi Arrow McLaren #7 124.911 4. Patricio O'Ward Arrow McLaren #5 124.819 5. Devlin DeFrancesco Andretti Autosport #29 124.733 6. Romain Grosjean Andretti Autosport #28 4 124.718 |
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Post by René on Aug 12, 2023 9:22:18 GMT
I always liked Bobby Rahal and cheered for him when he was still racing.   |
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Post by Carl on Aug 12, 2023 17:18:30 GMT
I've always liked Bobby Rahal, starting with his great performances in Formula Atlantic. He normally finished 2nd to Gilles Villeneuve but qualified ahead of many established Formula One aces at the legendary 1976 event at Trois-Rivières. He tried hard to gain entry to Formula One, never easy for talented drivers based elsewhere than Europe, but settled for a great career in IMSA and Champ Cars. Born and raised nearby, he seldom lost at Mid-Ohio, essentially his home track. In the final laps of the 1986 Indy 500. Rahal poured on the coal and set a race lap record in maintaining his narrow lead.
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Post by René on Aug 13, 2023 11:40:08 GMT
Fantastic race and what a great win for Scott Dixon! The 19th year in a row with at least one win. Unimaginable.  Those last 10 laps were really super exciting between Dixon and Graham Rahal. I think everyone wanted both to win, but this was very special. I did feel like they made their penultimate stop too early at Rahal Letterman Lanigan, but maybe they didn't have a choice with the tires they had left. The long yellow at the beginning played into the hands of Dixon, but it was fantastic anyway. Spinning in the first lap and still win! |
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Post by Carl on Aug 13, 2023 17:31:57 GMT
Fantastic race and what a great win for Scott Dixon! The 19th year in a row with at least one win. Unimaginable. Those last 10 laps were really super exciting between Dixon and Graham Rahal. I think everyone wanted both to win, but this was very special. I did feel like they made their penultimate stop too early at Rahal Letterman Lanigan, but maybe they didn't have a choice with the tires they had left. The long yellow at the beginning played into the hands of Dixon, but it was fantastic anyway. Spinning in the first lap and still win! Scott Dixon is one of a kind, a remarkable combination of talent and composure who found a home in America after Formula One was out of reach for his available funding. I was cheering for both drivers after final pit stops set the stage for an epic duel both deserved to win. As dominant as Graham Rahal was all weekend, perfect execution of strategy won the race for Scott Dixon. The final 10 laps were so intense, as though only two cars were racing and the others had only to stay out of their way. When Rahal gained five car lengths under braking for the final sweeping turn, I thought he'd soon take the lead. Both were on the limit, flirting with disaster, and neither made a serious mistake. Dixon praised his team and Rahal blamed lady luck and backmarkers. Both had a point, as near-perfect race strategy won the day. Because Team Rahal is not yet at that level, Rahal needed more luck for a well-deserved win and luck is always random. There but for fortune...
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