First let me say that my thoughts are with Mikhail Aleshin after his scary crash in practice Friday night. They are also with Dan Wheldon, as I am reminded how he helped improve the safety of these cars and how his loss encouraged us not to be complacent. I am grateful we did not witness another horrific tragedy.
But before we look ahead to tonight's Verizon IndyCar Series finale, let me take a look back at the past couple of weeks. I have not had much time to record my thoughts on the last two races but I have certainly had impressions of them!
I enjoyed the Milwaukee race, though I know some found it boring. Will Power dominated the race, it's true, but we were treated to some intense side-by-side action, particularly between Power and Tony Kanaan. I also felt Ryan Hunter-Reay's charge through the field was more impressive than Scott Dixon's run at Mid-Ohio. Unfortunately RHR did not have nearly as good of a result as Dixon on a track that has been good to him recently. It was overall a bad day for Andretti Autosport, and for Honda in general, as they really seemed to lag behind the competition. Josef Newgarden, however, had another good run, finishing fifth on a day when it was announced Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing and Ed Carpenter Racing would merge. I see this as an incredibly positive move for both teams, and I think it will greatly benefit Newgarden. Josef has shown such promise in the latter half of this season, and I think having a teammate (or two) will help him get over the hump and earn his first IndyCar victory.
Sonoma was more entertaining than Milwaukee, in my opinion. At first I thought it was going to be the Will Power steamroller show, as he pulled away from the field on a track he has owned in the past. Indeed, the race was a procession for awhile, until Power inexplicably spun and nearly collected other cars. Suddenly there was a changing of the guard and Mike Conway took over the lead, followed by Graham Rahal. I feel for Rahal, who was in a position to finally end his winless streak, but had to pit for fuel with just a few laps left. Those last laps were some of the most exciting we've seen all year. Cars were going 3-4 wide, fighting for a final position while Conway ran out of gas on the final turn and limped across the finish line in 14th place. Power was perhaps a little too aggressive in trying to pick up a few extra points, but he sure gave us a show. As a result of his difficulties and Helio's car troubles, this championship is not yet decided. So once again it all comes down to the final race.
Last year's Fontana finale was a fascinating spectacle to watch, but also a tale of attrition. Only nine cars finished the race. This year's race has the added drama of double points and intense summer heat. We know attendance is down, and quite frankly, we should not be surprised by that. Why would I sit and bake outside in 100F temps when I can sit inside in my A/C and watch it on TV? I do not support the decision to end the season by Labor Day AT ALL, and I know I'm not in the minority on that. Hopefully, though, we are treated to an action-packed thriller just like last year, whether it's in person or via our television sets.
The championship really feels like it's Will Power's to lose. He has made some unforgivable errors this year, to be sure. But he has also won three races, including one oval. He has been on the podium four times and nearly won another oval at Texas. He has won the pole four times this year. He has truly blossomed from a road- and street-course specialist to a strong all-around racer. He does deserve this championship, probably more than any other year, for that simple reason. An IndyCar Series champion should be a jack of all trades; someone who can win on different types of tracks and be a threat to the field every week. We can finally say that Will Power is that person.
On the other hand, so is Helio Castroneves, who is Power's main competition for this championship. Just like Will, Helio has come close several times but has never won the title. Certainly Helio can hang his hat on those three Indy 500 wins and be proud of those, but we also know he really wants to win a championship. And he deserves to as well. But I don't feel like this is his year. He has won only one race--Detroit--and has been on the podium five times. He's had some bad luck with mechanical gremlins late this year, too. Even though he won the Fontana pole and picked up a bonus point, he's still 50 points behind Power. Power had a disastrous qualifying effort, one that I'm mildly suspicious of. (How do the other Penske cars finish 1-2 in qualifying but Power is nearly last?) I don't see Simon Pagenaud or Ryan Hunter-Reay seriously challenging either Power or Helio, but having this race be worth double points definitely makes things interesting. I think Pagenaud needs to improve his oval skills to be an IndyCar champion. RHR might be in closer contention were it not for his mistake at Long Beach, but he did win the biggest race of the year so his season can still be called a success. Whether it's for Will Power or for Helio Castroneves, I think we'll be seeing Roger Penske holding the Astor Cup tonight.
We have a lot to watch for tonight, not just the championship. Some drivers are still looking to impress their current or future employers so they have jobs next year. Oval master Ed Carpenter returns. I wish we had some other cars in the race, like we do for the Indy 500, and like we did last year, but I think we'll see a good race. All in all I hope we see a safe race. That matters more than anything.
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