Post
by mlittle » Wed Sep 28, 2011 4:21 pm
(from 17-18 Sept. 2011)
----On Lap 1, the gap to Will Power was .918 seconds. On Lap 10 it was 1.4 seconds. By Lap 45 it was an even 2.0 seconds, and on Lap 55 it was 4.5 seconds. By Lap 57, the final green lap before a yellow came out for Ryan Hunter-Reay spin, the gap was out to 6.2 seconds.
Simply put, Target Chip Ganassi Racing’s Scott Dixon had Power and the rest of the field covered during Sunday’s Indy Japan The Final on the Motegi road course.
The Kiwi, who also won in convincing style at the Mid-Ohio road course race in August, led the 63-lap Motegi race at will, keeping Power at bay, despite intense pressure from the Aussie on two restarts.
The measure of Dixon's advantage was revealed on the final restart, where Power, with an almighty charge down the inside, was held in place as Dixon took the long way around the outside of the right-hand corner. At a place where most cars spun, Dixon's car stuck to the track and marched away from Power.
"I have to give a lot of credit to Team Target; they gave me a fantastic car," said Dixon. "In some sections of the race I was just cruising trying to save fuel. Great pit stops and fuel strategy, and everything was flawless. [Will Power] was a real handful, especially at the end. [I’m] just happy we had a fantastic weekend.”
Dixon crossed the finish line 3.4 seconds ahead of Power, who took control of the championship after Dixon’s teammate, Dario Franchitti, finished a distant eighth.
Five points arrears coming into Motegi, Power pulled ahead by 11 points on Sunday and also earned his second consecutive Mario Andretti Road Course trophy.
“At no point in time was I settling for second," said Power of his determined effort. "I was giving it everything I got. If we can finish second today and win the championship, that’s alright by me.”
It wasn't exciting to watch, but for a driver who was doing all he could to bridge the gap to second in the championship, Dixon maximized his points haul by earning pole, leading the most laps and winning the race. He now sits 48 points behind Franchitti.
Franchitti's day took a turn for the worse when he caused a mess in Turn 1 on the Lap 25 restart when he tipped Team Penske's Ryan Briscoe into a spin, who then nudged Franchitti's teammate Graham Rahal into a spin of his own.
The Ganassi team wasn't done suffering quite yet, as Charlie Kimball was forced onto the dirt while taking avoiding action.
With Rahal, Kimball and Franchitti running inside the top 6 at the time, the Scot's costly error would ruin the chances of Rahal who finished 13th, Briscoe who finished 21st and Kimball who came home 22nd after running as high as fourth.
"The incident was totally my mistake, totally my mistake," admitted Franchitti. "I did a lot hard work to get from ninth to fifth, and I'd been saving fuel the whole first stint. I made risky move on the restart. I thought there was a gap and Ryan [Briscoe] was going wide on the entry and that was that. It was just a stupid move and we had a great fight back from 25th. Great job by the guys in the pits and I drove as hard as I knew how. I shouldn't have put us in that position. We still have it all to play for, but I keep making it more difficult."
After the cars running third through sixth suffered a setback, the entire field shifted forward, giving a few drivers who had been slightly out of the frame a chance to shine.
Marco Andretti, who was impressively fast on the slower Firestone Blacks while he was surrounded by drivers on Reds, soldiered home to finish third, his best result since winning at Iowa.
"It was a good day for the Venom crew - they did a great job in the pits," he said. "We had to do our part today and push when we had to push. We made a bit of a gamble with the tire choice and I think it paid off. We were able to be on the reds when it counted and were able to push when we needed."
Prior to the race's final caution period on Lap 57, Andretti had fallen more than 20 seconds behind Dixon and Power, and after the Lap 61 restart, the third-generation driver held off a determined Alex Tagliani. Tagliani's fourth-place finish matched his best result of the season at the first Texas race, and after starting 15th, the French-Canadian looked more competitive than he's been in quite some time.
Oriol Servia, who marched from 16th to run as high as third, faded on the final restart but still salvaged a solid fifth-place finish.
"To finish fifth after starting 16th is a great result for the Telemundo team," he said. "It was important for the point standings because everyone we are fighting for the top-five had a bad race. On the last restart we were fourth to Marco and I really wanted a podium but in trying to get third I fell back to fifth so I am just a little mad with myself because I didn't get it. I almost had it!"
Sebastien Bourdais, making his final IndyCar start of the season, registered his fourth sixth-place finish of the year, despite barging Hunter-Reay off the road and bringing out the yellow on Lap 57.
Bourdais' Dale Coyne Racing teammate, rookie driver James Jakes, had his most competitive outing of the year. As the biggest beneficiary of Franchitti's mistake, the Brit looked comfortable running fourth, but gave away what would have been the best finish of his career after stalling during a pit stop on Lap 42. He was eventually credited with 13th.
Helio Castroneves was originally listed in seventh, but INDYCAR officials penalized the Brazilian for passing JR Hildebrand under a standing yellow on the final lap, dropping the three-time Indy 500 winner to 22nd, the last car on the lead lap.
After the race, Castroneves came unhinged, using Twitter to vent his raw feelings toward the series.
"It is sad to see one person being responsible for bringing down an entire series," he wrote. "Brian Banhart is inconsistent and even changes rule book when is convenient for him, and his own personal interests. In the same race in International television he penalizes some but not others. Making the famous @paultracy 's words mine : Brian Barnhart is a circus clown! Very disappointed for finishing 7th. and being put to 22nd. This is just ABSURD !!! Just expressing my feelings right now!"
Although Castroneves' outburst was done via social media, rather than in public and on television like Edmonton in 2009, the veteran driver will likely be writing the series a check for his transgression.
Castroneves' penalty promoted Hildebrand to seventh, giving the Rookie of the Year leader his best road or street course result of 2011.
"We all worked together this weekend to get a car that wasn't necessarily the fastest in the field, but one that was easy to sit back and rip off some laps," he said. "And for today's race, that's what you needed. The National Guard boys gave me a good car and we were able to be smart about where we were at on the track and pick points to be aggressive."
Although Franchitti made a lot of extra work for himself at Motegi, he put on the drive of the race after INDYCAR moved him to 25th--the back of the line--on the Lap 29 restart.
At a track he reckoned passing would be a challenge, Franchitti carved his way through the field, passing one car per lap during stretches of the race. Attrition and alternate fuel strategies by some of his rivals helped his cause, but his move from 25th to eighth came from hard work and a need to minimize the damage done to his championship aspirations.
Andretti Autosport's Mike Conway moved from 20th to ninth, and Japanese hero Takuma Sato completed the top 10.
With the series moving to ovals for the final two rounds, and with Power sitting on a slim 11-point championship lead, the race to winning the IZOD IndyCar Series title is far from over.
As Power proved last year, and as Franchitti reaffirmed at Motegi, one small misstep is all it takes for control of the championship to change hands.
Power is much stronger on ovals in 2011, but is he good enough to keep Franchitti in his place?
The first answer to that question will arrive in two weeks at Kentucky.
Results Sunday of the Indy Japan The Final IZOD IndyCar Series event on the 2.983 mile Twin Ring Motegi Road Course, with order of finish, starting position in parentheses, driver, chassis-engine, laps completed and reason out (if any):
1. (1) Scott Dixon, Dallara-Honda, 63, Running
2. (2) Will Power, Dallara-Honda, 63, Running
3. (10) Marco Andretti, Dallara-Honda, 63, Running
4. (15) Alex Tagliani, Dallara-Honda, 63, Running
5. (16) Oriol Servia, Dallara-Honda, 63, Running
6. (14) Sebastien Bourdais, Dallara-Honda, 63, Running
7. (19) JR Hildebrand, Dallara-Honda, 63, Running
8. (9) Dario Franchitti, Dallara-Honda, 63, Running
9. (20) Mike Conway, Dallara-Honda, 63, Running
10. (11) Takuma Sato, Dallara-Honda, 63, Running
11. (23) Danica Patrick, Dallara-Honda, 63, Running
12. (3) Graham Rahal, Dallara-Honda, 63, Running
13. (8) James Jakes, Dallara-Honda, 63, Running
14. (26) Simona de Silvestro, Dallara-Honda, 63, Running
15. (5) James Hinchcliffe, Dallara-Honda, 63, Running
16. (18) Giorgio Pantano, Dallara-Honda, 63, Running
17. (25) Tony Kanaan, Dallara-Honda, 63, Running
18. (22) Hideki Mutoh, Dallara-Honda, 63, Running
19. (21) Ana Beatriz, Dallara-Honda, 63, Running
20. (4) Ryan Briscoe, Dallara-Honda, 63, Running
21. (13) EJ Viso, Dallara-Honda, 63, Running
22. (6) Helio Castroneves, Dallara-Honda, 63, Running
23. (7) Charlie Kimball, Dallara-Honda, 62, Off Course
24. (17) Ryan Hunter-Reay, Dallara-Honda, 62, Running
25. (24) Vitor Meira, Dallara-Honda, 61, Off Course
26. (12) Joao Paulo de Oliveira, Dallara-Honda, 19, Mechanical
Race Statistics
Winners average speed: 96.635
Time of Race: 01:56:41.0107
Margin of victory: 3.4375 seconds
Cautions: 3 for 8 laps
Lead changes: 2 among 2 drivers
Lap Leaders:
Dixon 1-20, Power 21, Dixon 22-63
Point Standings: Power 542, Franchitti 531, Dixon 483, Servia 397, Kanaan 353, Briscoe 340, Andretti 327, Hunter-Reay 317, Rahal 302, Castroneves 302.
