The Numbers Behind Winning the 2014 Verizon IndyCar Series Championship

 

Photo Credit: Chris Owens

It is unfortunate to note the 2014 Verizon IndyCar Series is ending so early. After 17 races, the open wheel series season wraps with a final race on a two-mile oval in California. The last chance for a team to score a victory in the 2014 tour, the MAVTV 500 at Auto Club Speedway provide the last stand to claim the drivers’ championship for the Verizon IndyCar Championship.

In the best contention for the 2014 crown is a pair of Team Penske drivers who both have a case for being owed a championship. Will Power finished in the runner-up spot in the IndyCar Series championship three times in a row between 2010 and 2012. In second heading into California is Brazil’s Helio Castroneves. Having won the Indianapolis 500 three times, Castroneves has never won a championship in a major American open wheel racing series. Finishing second in the 1997 Indy Lights Series to Tony Kanaan, 13 full seasons in the IndyCar Series have seen him end the season in second three times. Both Power and Castoneves would like to put a cherry on top of career sundae with a Verizon IndyCar championship trophy.

 

Photo Credit: Richard Dowdy

Points Heading into MAVTV 500

Will Power: 626
Helio Castroneves: 575
Simon Pagenaud: 545
Ryan Hunter-Reay: 534

　

Operating on a double point system with the MAVTV 500 being part of the 2014 IndyCar Triple Crown, the race opens an otherwise sealed championship providing contenders a chance to unseat Will Power (or Power a chance to unseat himself). Mathematically, the championship is still a four-driver fight prior to the green flag dropping. However, 2012 IndyCar Series champion Ryan Hunter-Reay will be eliminated from contention at the start of the race. 92 points back from Power ahead of the 500-mile race at Auto Club Speedway, 22 cars starting the MAVTV 500 will result in a minimum of 16 points being scored.

With only Will Power, Helio Castroneves and Simon Pagenaud in contention for the 2014 championship, 200 laps around the fast Auto Club Speedway in California is a rare occasion to see a three-way title fight at the IndyCar finale. Heading into to the final race of the season, Power held a 51-point lead over his Team Penske teammate. An outside shot for the 2014 championship, Simon Pagenaud driving for Schmidt Peterson Motorsports is 81 points from the lead. In qualifying for Saturday night’s race, Helio Castroneves captured an important point by taking the pole position for the MAVTV 500. The gain draws the Brazilian to 50 points of teammate Will Power.

　

Championship Scenarios:

 

Castroneves Wins Race and Will Power Finishes 7th while also Leading Lap

Photo Credit: Chris Jones

 
Will Power: 679
Helio Castroneves: 679
Simon Pagenaud: ?

　

With a 50-point lead, Will Power only needs to gather 53 additional points in the 2014 Verizon IndyCar Series to guarantee a championship. With the 52 points gained with the seventh place run, leading a lap will grant Power the one additional point solidifying the championship for the Australian. Even if the #3 car wins the race and leads the most laps, Castroneves can only add 103 points. This scenario will end in a points tie between the Team Penske entrants. With three wins to a potential two, Will Power would prevail for 2014.

In 500-mile races this season, Helio Castroneves holds the best average finish with runner-up spots at Indianapolis as well as Pocono. Will Power’s finishing average in the same two races for 2014 was ninth. This scenario has a close statistical possibility.

　


Power Finishes 22^nd and Castroneves Finishes 4^th While Leading Most Laps

Photo Credit: Chris Nagy

 
Helio Castroneves: 643
Will Power: 642
Simon Pagenaud: ?

　

Since the minimum amount of points available within the 22-car for the MAVTV 500 is 16, Will Power will end the 2014 season with a points total of at least 642 points. Castroneves would need to gain more than 66 points in the race to steal the title from Power. In this scenario, the Castroneves came take the championship mathematically by finishing in the top three spots without leading a lap. However, Helio Castroneves could also be crowned 2014 Verizon IndyCar champion if he finishes fourth withstanding he will gain three additional points leading the most laps at Auto Club Speedway at the end of 500 miles.

　


Pagenaud Wins Race, Power takes 21^st and Castroneves finishes 4^th

Photo Credit: Chris Nagy

Simon Pagenaud: 646
Will Power: 644
Helio Castroneves: 640

　

Even if Power finishes 22^nd, the Simon Pagenaud would have to take victory at Auto Club Speedway in the #77 car in order to take the 2014 championship with misfortune required for Will Power. Power would need to finish in the bottom two positions of the race for Pagenaud‘s championship dreams to be realized. Currently 31 points behind Helio Castroneves, Simon Pagenaud would need the second Team Penske title contender to place fourth or lower in the final results. Unfortunately for Pagenaud, his already long-shot hopes for the 2014 title is not helped by so-so runs in the previous two 500-mile oval races this season.

Please Note: The points would account for the unlikelihood Helio Castroneves will not lead a lap while starting on the pole for Saturday night’s MAVTV 500.

　

Of course, these three championship scenarios would not matter if Will Power would be positioned ahead of both Helio Castroneves and Simon Pagenaud at the end of the race. While Power won last year’s MAVTV 500 at Auto Club Speedway, earning a 21^st place starting spot in Friday’s qualifying could mean the points will at least be closer following Saturday night’s race on the two-mile speedway.

　

California Oval finale for 2013 IZOD IndyCar Series has Power on Pole

Photo Credit: Michael L. Levitt for Chevy Racing

The final event of the 2013 IZOD IndyCar Series, the year concludes in Fontana, California at the two-mile Auto Club Speedway. Preparing for a 500-mile Saturday night closing of the 19-race season, a championship is up for grabs between two long-time titans of the open-wheel racing series. Also, aside from the fight to be the overall best of the 2013 season, the IZOD IndyCar Series' MAVTV 500 presents a final chance for drivers to add to their year's resumes. A victory on the very speedy Auto Club Speedway would be the ideal way to cap off the 2013 IZOD IndyCar Series for every one of the 25 drivers starting on Saturday.

Qualifying using a two-lap time average, the 2013 MAVTV 500 pole was snatched by Australian Will Power. With a time of 1 minute, 5.2247 seconds, Power's #12 Dallara-Chevrolet recorded an average speed of 220.775 miles per hour over the two laps around Auto Club Speedway. Seated seventh in the 2013 IZOD IndyCar points standing, Will Power's year ends with him out of contention for the overall championship for the first time since he began running full-time for Team Penske. It was a surreal 2013 season for Will Power who struggled during multiple road course races (a type of racing the Australian driver excelled in over previous years). Recent wins at Sonoma and race two of the Houston event has returned Will Power to typical form.

Nearly 1.1 miles per hour slower than Will Power, Helio Castroneves still posts a strong time with the #3 Team Penske car. Entering this final race of the 2013 IZOD IndyCar Series, Castroneves is trailing Target Chip Ganassi driver Scott Dixon by 25 points. Castroneves held the point lead through much of the season but lost it due to struggles in The Shell and Pennzoil Grand Prix of Houston weekend. The Brazilian is attempting to regain the points lead at the most crucial time. Hunting his third IndyCar championship and first since 2008, New Zealand's Scott Dixon qualified seventh with his Honda powered #9 car.

With the championship at stake, the teams of both Helio Castroneves and Scott Dixon elected to place fresh engines in their race cars for the 500-mile Saturday night event. By doing so, each driver will be demoted 10 places from their qualifying spots. Therefore, Helio Castroneves will start 12th in his Team Penske machine while Scott Dixon will be starting 17th in his Target Chip Ganassi Racing supported vehicle. Based on the complexity of long-distance oval races on the IZOD IndyCar Series, starting position in the MAVTV 500 is not considered too serious for drivers and teams.

Returning for the finale, popular part-time driver AJ Allmendinger is piloting the #2 machine for Team Penske. In qualifying, a third fastest time by Allmendinger solidified the organization's quick pace on a two-mile track car owner Roger Penske built and originally operated.

Behind the Team Penske domination of the Auto Club Speedway qualifying, the Dragon Racing car co-owned by Roger Penske's son Jay will start the MAVTV 500 third over a fourth-fastest qualifying effort by Sebastien Bourdais. Posting a fifth-fastest time on Friday, Charlie Kimball driving the Chip Ganassi owned #83 car is starting fourth due to Castroneves' penalty. Tenth in the overall drivers' points, Kimball's 2013 racing effort is a considerable improvement over his previous two years in the series. Also worth of full marks is James Jakes who qualified at an average speed of 217.979 miles per hour for sixth fastest on Friday. Jakes' time was actually identical to seventh place Scott Dixon.  

Won last year by Ed Carpenter (who starts 8th on Saturday night), the MAVTV 500 is considered a wild card event where almost any competitor has a fair shot at winning. AJ Allmendiner, Alex Tagliani driving in substitution for an injured Dario Franchitti for Target Chip Ganassi Racing, 2013 Indy 500 Rookie of the Year standout Carlos Manoz, Pippa Mann and JR Hildebrand returning to the series driving the Bryan Herta Autosport #98 car are limited or one-race deals that could easily pull off an upset against the field of regulars. While the Team Penske cars powered by Chevrolet proved strong in qualifying, Honda won the last IndyCar oval event at Pocono with a race pace that also emphasized fuel economy.

Certain to provide an eventful end to the 2013 IZOD IndyCar Series (as well as the final race with IZOD as the title sponsor), the 250-lap MAVTV 500 is set to receive a green flag at 6:10 PM local time in California (9:10 PM eastern time).

Qualifying Results

1. (12) Will Power, Dallara-Chevy, 220.775

2. (3) Helio Castroneves, Dallara-Chevy, 219.677
3. (2) AJ Allmendinger, Dallara-Chevy, 218.894
4. (7) Sebastien Bourdais, Dallara-Chevy, 218.513
5. (83) Charlie Kimball, Dallara-Honda, 217.986
6. (16) James Jakes, Dallara-Honda, 217.979
7. (9) Scott Dixon, Dallara-Honda, 217.979
8. (25) Marco Andretti, Dallara-Chevy, 217.958
9. (20) Ed Carpenter, Dallara-Chevy, 217.932
10. (67) Josef Newgarden, Dallara-Honda, 217.871
11. (27) James Hinchcliffe, Dallara-Chevy, 217.798
12. (11) Tony Kanaan, Dallara-Chevy, 217.566
13. (10) Alex Tagliani, Dallara-Honda, 217.419
14. (5) Carlos Munoz, Dallara-Chevy, 217.050
15. (1) Ryan Hunter-Reay, Dallara-Chevy, 216.898
16. (77) Simon Pagenaud, Dallara-Honda, 216.447
17. (4) Oriol Servia, Dallara-Chevy, 216.213
18. (15) Graham Rahal, Dallara-Honda, 216.106
19. (98) JR Hildebrand, Dallara-Honda, 215.967
20. (55) Tristan Vautier, Dallara-Honda, 215.207
21. (78) Simona De Silvestro, Dallara-Chevy, 214.679
22. (6) Sebastian Saavedra, Dallara-Chevy, 213.262
23. (19) Justin Wilson, Dallara-Honda, no speed
24. (18) Pippa Mann, Dallara-Honda, no speed
25. (14) Takuma Sato, Dallara-Honda, no speed

Will Power's Potency in Sao Paulo Leads to Third 2012 INDYCAR Win

Photo Credit: INDYCAR/LAT USA

The 2012 IZOD INDYCAR Series has started with Team Penske taking every thing of value so far on their open wheel tour. Team Penske drivers Helio Castroneves and Will Power have collectively won the first three rounds in the 2012 season. Winning the first three United States race in the IZOD INDYCAR Series, the Itaipava Sao Paulo Indy 300 presented by Nestle provided a change of scenery where other members of the 26-car open wheel racing field were intent on claiming glory.

In qualifying, the Chevrolet-powered #12 Team Penske car of Will Power fended off the challenge of Dario Franchitti's #10 Target Chip Ganassi Dallara DW12 race car. A member of the Honda engine brigade that received the aid of a more powerful turbocharger unit for this weekend's event, this would be a break-out race for the reigning IZOD INDYCAR Series champion who had been haunted by a difficult start to 2012 where him and his Target Chip Ganassi Racing team appeared off-form from previous seasons.

Despite the newly-invigorated competition from the Honda runners, the pole-sitter at the start of the 75-lap Itaipava Sao Paulo Indy 300 jetted away. For anyone expecting that the IZOD INDYCAR Series' pattern of Team Penske dominance in 2012 would be defeated in Brazil, Will Power gave no indication of that happening. The #12 car of Power led the first 51 laps on the streets of Sao Paulo and was handily faster than Dario Franchitti early on and the Ryan Hunter-Reay's #28 car for Andretti Autosport.

Seeking to join the #12 car of Will Power, Team Penske Ryan Briscoe surged through the field in a hurry early in the Itaipava Sao Paulo Indy 300 race. Started 9th, the #2 car of Briscoe diced into 6th place by lap 19 and climbed to 4th two laps later. Driving a fast Dallara-Chevrolet, Ryan Briscoe's advance ended with the #2 car in the turn 10 wall on lap 22. This finish was Briscoe's first DNF of the 2012 season and the first for a Team Penske machine this year.

After a brief caution to remove the derelict car of Ryan Briscoe, the race restarted on lap 26. As Dario Franchitti is sent spinning by contact from the #14 car piloted by Mike Conway, the yellow flag returned. Falling to 22^nd from the incident, Franchitti would recover over the course of the remaining laps to secure a top-5 run. A multi-car accident in turn 2 brought out caution on lap 30 concluding a very slow period of the Sao Paulo IZOD INDYCAR race. Ultimately ending the race for Simona de Silvestro’s #78 car, other drivedia ers including the James Jakes and Josef Newgarden were hindered by the bottleneck in turn 2. In the case of Newgarden, he would proceed to set fastest lap at the Itaipava Sao Paulo Indy 300 on lap 58 with the #67 Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing entry.

Photo Credit: INDYCAR/LAT USA

Into the last one-third distance of the event, a pit stop of Will Power offered what would be the only chances for other cars to lead the Itaipava Sao Paulo Indy 300. Leading on lap 53, Helio Castroneves delighted the Brazilian fans with a presence at the front of the IZOD INDYCAR field. James Hinchcliffe also recorded one lap in the lead on the 2.536-mile road course before turning the lead over to the #9 car of Scott Dixon. While the Target Chip Ganassi Racing car of Dixon circulated for 8 laps out front, caution flew for the Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing’s #67 car of Newgarden stopped in turn 6. Scott Dixon pitted for fuel costing him front-running track position which will prove more costly into the final 9 laps as Will Power reassumed the race’s lead.

Setting up for a double-file restart, Power and Ryan Hunter-Reay led to field to the restart on lap 67. As teams battle into the tight first corner, Takuma Sato made a most daring pass on the third place car of Dario Franchitti. With an edge into the corner, Sato in the #15 Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing entry took the final podium spot in the late stage of the Sao Paulo race.

While the Japanese driver Takuma Sato demonstrated a perfect manoeuvre, other drivers on the lap 67 restart were not as successful. When the #14 AJ Foyt Racing car was negotiating the first and second corner of the low-speed section of the start course, a chain reaction caused the collection of several cars. Lead lap cars caught in the mayhem included the #9 of Scott Dixon, #38 of Graham Rahal, #26 of Macro Andretti and the #77 of Simon Pagenaud who would all lose lead lap as well as top-10 runs.

For a final 5-lap run to the checkered flag, Will Power gained a healthy lead on Hunter-Reay and won the Sao Paulo round of the IZOD INDYCAR Series for a third straight season. The #12 car owned the lead of the event for 63 of the 75 laps making for a strong effort for the Australian. Power’s win hands Team Penske a fourth-straight victory through the start of the 2012 season. “Very happy to get that third win here and third in a row. We need to make it four in a row at the most important race next.” said the winner Will Power in post race who leads the IZOD INDYCAR overall points entering the Indianapolis Motor Speedway round last month.

Photo Credit: INDYCAR/LAT USA

Little over 0.9 seconds behind Power‘s #12 car, Ryan Hunter-Reay’s runner-up finish delivered the first one-two finish for Chevrolet engines. Takuma Sato would finish on the podium at the Itaipava Sao Paulo Indy 300, the former Japanese Formula 1 driver’s first highest-finish in three seasons of the IZOD INDYCAR Series. Sato’s effort with the #15 car was even more impressive based on the fact he started 25^th and was assessed a pit road speeding penalty early in the race.

The lone Brazilian round on the 2012 IZOD INDYCAR Series tour, the Itaipava Sao Paulo Indy 300 presented by Nestle was the only chance for four drivers to display their talent in front of a home country nation. Helio Castroneves carried his country’s pride to 4^th place from a 18^th starting spot. Rubens Barrichello, competing in his home city for the first time in IZOD INDYCAR racing, netted a 10^th place result for KV Racing Technology.

From 6^th to 8^th place in the Sao Paulo race, the IZOD INDYCAR Series rookies from last year have defused the sophomore jinx. Andretti Autosport’s James Hinchcliffe finished highest of the 2011 rookie group in 6^th place ahead of JR Hildebrand driving for Panther Racing. Coming from 15^th place to 8^th over the 75 laps, Charlie Kimball was third-highest among the Honda runners in the event.

The Itaipava Sao Paulo Indy 300 presented by Nestle was the final race before the Month of May celebrations and events leading up to the Indianapolis 500 of May 27^th.



2012 IZOD INDYCAR
Itaipava Sao Paulo Indy 300 presented by Nestle
Race Results

Pos #	Car #	Driver	Nationality	Race Team	Engine
1	12	Will Power	Australia	Team Penske	Chevrolet
2	28	Ryan Hunter-Reay	United States	Andretti Autosport	Chevrolet
3	15	Takuma Sato	Japan	Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing	Honda
4	3	Helio Castroneves	Brazil	Team Penske	Chevrolet
5	10	Dario Franchitti	Scotland	Target/Chip Ganassi Racing	Honda
6	27	James Hinchcliffe	Canada	Andretti Autosport	Chevrolet
7	4	JR Hildebrand	United States	Panther Racing	Chevrolet
8	83	Charlie Kimball	United States	Chip Ganassi Racing	Honda
9	5	EJ Viso	Venezuela	KV Racing Technology	Chevrolet
10	8	Rubens Barrichello	Brazil	KV Racing Technology	Chevrolet
11	22	Oriol Servia	Spain	Lotus-Dreyer & Reinbold Racing	Lotus
12	77	Simon Pagenaud	France	Schmidt-Hamilton Motorsports	Honda
13	11	Tony Kanaan	Brazil	KV Racing Technology	Chevrolet
14	26	Marco Andretti	United States	Andretti Autosport	Chevrolet
15	19	James Jakes	England	Dale Coyne Racing	Honda
16	38	Graham Rahal	United States	Chip Ganassi Racing	Honda
17	9	Scott Dixon	New Zealand	Target/Chip Ganassi Racing	Honda
18	7	Sebastien Bourdais	France	Lotus-Dragon Racing	Lotus
19	14	Mike Conway	England	AJ Foyt Enterprises	Honda
20	25	Ana Beatriz	Brazil	Andretti Autosport	Chevrolet
21	20	Ed Carpenter	United States	Ed Carpenter Racing	Chevrolet
22	18	Justin Wilson	England	Dale Coyne Racing	Honda
23	67	Josef Newgarden	United States	Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing	Honda
24	78	Simona de Silvestro	Switzerland	Lotus-HVM Racing	Lotus
25	2	Ryan Briscoe	Australia	Team Penske	Chevrolet
26	6	Katherine Legge	England	Lotus-Dragon Racing	Lotus

Power Dances to Sao Paulo INDYCAR Race Pole

Photo Credit: INDYCAR/LAT USA

For the third time in the first four races of the 2012 IZOD INDYCAR Series, the open wheel tour is running on a temporary street course. While each of those road circuits come with their own charm, the Itaipava Sao Paulo Indy 300 presents the series’ first trip outside of the United States this season to race on the streets of Brazil. Presented with a 2.536-mile, 11-turn course, the 26 cars of the IZOD INDYCAR Series readied for their 2012 appearance in the major Brazilian city of Sao Paulo.

Qualifying for Sunday’s main 75-lap event went off without a major hitch under cloudy skies and a 74-degree Fahrenheit ambient temperature. Without the confusing drama that proceeded the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach race, the Chevrolet engine and the Honda engines (now operating with a more powerful turbocharger unit thanks to the manufacturer‘s appeal to the sanctioning body), The Firestone Fast Six grouping featured three cars from each manufacturer.

After the final 10-minute session in qualifying, it was a familiar competitor that owned the day. The dominance of Team Penske in the 2012 IZOD INDYCAR Series rolled into South America. As Team Penske remains undefeated in qualifying for 2012, the #12 Dallara-Chevrolet piloted by Will Power topped the time charts on the Brazilian streets. Lapping the racetrack in 81.4045 seconds, Power held off the strong fight of defending IZOD INDYCAR Series champion Dario Franchitti and the Scot’s Honda-powered #10 Target Chip Ganassi Racing entry. The pole for the Itaipava Sao Paulo Indy 300 totals 26 times Will Power would start from the preferred spot on the IZOD INDYCAR Series starting grid. Post-qualifying, pole-sitter Power said, “It's good to put the Verizon Chevrolet on the pole. It was satisfying, especially knowing that Honda seems to have an advantage on the straights at the moment, so being on pole is a good start to the weekend.”

Ending the Firestone Fast Six session in his highest position of the 2012 season, Dario Franchitti is still searching for a solid race result in order to begin mounting a title defence in 2012. “We've obviously had a difficult start to the season and a lot of things go wrong in the last couple weeks. We off-loaded with a good car of the truck and made some improvements to it. I'm a bit disappointed in qualifying, especially because the time is in the car.” said Franchitti. Heading into Sunday’s main event, Dario Franchitti and the #10 car have achieved no better than 10^th place in the finishing order of an IZOD INDYCAR Series race. Franchitti’s teammate for Target Chip Ganassi Racing Scott Dixon showed solidarity by taking two of the three top positions starting the Itaipava Sao Paulo Indy 300.

As well as the Target Chip Ganassi Racing team posting a strong effort in qualifying on the streets of Sao Paulo, the Andretti Autosport pair of James Hinchcliffe and Ryan Hunter-Reay are continuing to be mainstays in the Firestone Fast Six. For Canada’s Hinchcliffe, the Brazilian qualifying session extends his undefeated streak for making the final top-6 time trial grouping for 2012 IZOD INDYCAR events. "I guess four is the number of the day: fourth place, fourth time in the Firestone Fast Six. It's certainly not a bad starting spot to be on the first two rows, but we had a competitive car in (the second qualifying session) and were hoping for a little bit higher up. I need to get a better handle on how to make these tires work better on the second run.” said James Hinchcliffe still searching for his first race win in the series on Sunday.

Returning to Dale Coyne Racing in 2012, British driver Justin Wilson proved himself to be a significant force again for an longer-shot victory. Leading laps at Long Beach in the #18 Honda-powered Dallara, the momentum continued to Sao Paulo where Wilson qualified 6^th for the street race. Commenting post-qualifying on his chances on Sunday, Wilson stated, “We're starting sixth, we're in a good spot and we'll see what happens in the race."

Just outside of the Firestone Fast Six, Graham Rahal drives a Chip Ganassi Racing #38 car to 7^th on Saturday ahead of the #14 car piloted by Mike Conway. In 9^th, rookie Josef Newgarden will again get a chance to start in the top-10 of an IZOD INDYCAR Series race for Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing making it his third time in four events this season. Rookie contender and series standout following the near-win in Long Beach Simon Pagenaud starts the race deep in 17^th spot.

Despite a feisty field of Brazilian drivers in the 2012 IZOD INDYCAR Series, the Saturday qualifying session ended on a bit of a down note for the drivers running in their home country. 12^th fastest on track during time trials, Tony Kanaan was the fastest of the Brazilian contingent who starts just ahead of former Formula 1 driver Rubens Barrichello. Sunday’s 75-lap race will be Barrichello first IZOD INDYCAR start in front of his hometown crowd. For Team Penske, Helio Castroneves starts 20^th ahead of fellow Brazilian Ana Beatriz who will be starting his first race as a fifth Andretti Autosport car.

The 74 laps on the Sao Paulo start course is set for noon Eastern time with a probability that rain and thunderstorms could affect the Brazilian race for a third year in a row.


2012 IZOD INDYCAR
Itaipava Sao Paulo Indy 300
Qualifying Results

Pos #	Car #	Driver	Nationality	Race Team	Engine
1	12	Will Power	Australia	Team Penske	Chevrolet
2	10	Dario Franchitti	Scotland	Target/Chip Ganassi Racing	Honda
3	9	Scott Dixon	New Zealand	Target/Chip Ganassi Racing	Honda
4	27	James Hinchcliffe	Canada	Andretti Autosport	Chevrolet
5	28	Ryan Hunter-Reay	United States	Andretti Autosport	Chevrolet
6	18	Justin Wilson	England	Dale Coyne Racing	Honda
7	38	Graham Rahal	United States	Chip Ganassi Racing	Honda
8	14	Mike Conway	England	AJ Foyt Enterprises	Honda
9	67	Josef Newgarden	United States	Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing	Honda
10	2	Ryan Briscoe	Australia	Team Penske	Chevrolet
11	26	Marco Andretti	United States	Andretti Autosport	Chevrolet
12	11	Tony Kanaan	Brazil	KV Racing Technology	Chevrolet
13	8	Rubens Barrichello	Brazil	KV Racing Technology	Chevrolet
14	5	EJ Viso	Venezuela	KV Racing Technology	Chevrolet
15	4	JR Hildebrand	United States	Panther Racing	Chevrolet
16	83	Charlie Kimball	United States	Chip Ganassi Racing	Honda
17	77	Simon Pagenaud	France	Schmidt-Hamilton Motorsports	Honda
18	19	James Jakes	England	Dale Coyne Racing	Honda
19	7	Sebastien Bourdais	France	Lotus-Dragon Racing	Lotus
20	3	Helio Castroneves	Brazil	Team Penske	Chevrolet
21	25	Ana Beatriz	Brazil	Andretti Autosport	Chevrolet
22	20	Ed Carpenter	United States	Ed Carpenter Racing	Chevrolet
23	78	Simona de Silvestro	Switzerland	Lotus-HVM Racing	Lotus
24	22	Oriol Servia	Spain	Lotus-Dreyer & Reinbold Racing	Lotus
25	6	Katherine Legge	England	Lotus-Dragon Racing	Lotus
26	15	Takuma Sato	Japan	Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing	Honda

Katherine Legge and Takuma Sato will be assessed 10-grid position penalty for unapproved engine changes. 

Briscoe Fastest During INDYCAR Qualifying on Streets of Long Beach

Photo Credit: Steve Swope/(C)2012 Steve Swope Photography

The third race weekend for the IZOD INDYCAR Series in 2012, the series returns to a temporary street circuits for the prestigious Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach. With Saturday’s qualifying very important on the circuit where passing has proven to be tricky, this year’s time trial preparation for the 85-lap race Sunday would involve a very unusual situation for the IZOD INDYCAR Campaigners using the league‘s lead engine.

After two race in the 2012 IZOD INDYCAR Series, the Team Penske has shown off their understanding of the all-new Dallara DW12 race cars as drivers Helio Castroneves and Will Power won the season‘s first events. Team Penske also demonstrated under the new competitive engine formula in the IZOD INDYCAR Series the effectiveness of the Chevrolet power plant. However, heading into the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach, all of the 11 competitors using Chevrolet’s Twin-Turbocharged V-6 engines were forced to heed to the advice of manufacturer that would cost them grid position starting the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach. Engine changes on the 11 Chevrolet-powered INDYCAR race vehicles would be assessed in Saturday’s qualifying on the 11-turn, 1.968-mile road course in California.

Unlike Friday’s track time that was accompanied by a wet and cold day, Saturday was more inviting for the 2012 IZOD INDYCAR competitors as they try to set hot laps on the street course. Due to limited dry track practice, there was still some unknowns for drivers and teams. With all 26 IZOD INDYCAR cars posting time, it was Team Penske who again proved victorious during qualifying. Beating all fellow competitors for the first time in 2012, it was the Australian Ryan Briscoe who claimed has first pole since Chicagoland of 2010. Lapping the streets of Long Beach at 1 minute, 8.6089 seconds, Briscoe provides Team penske with three drivers having won a qualifying session for 2012. Briscoe’s winning effort came after a fierce battle on-track with teammate Will Power.

Exchanging fastest laps in the final minutes of the Firestone Fast Six qualifying round, Briscoe’s advantage over Power was less than a tenth of a second. Despite Ryan Briscoe having to accept a 10 grid position penalty (dropping him to 10^th place for Sunday), the fastest time will count in the points standings where a single point will be rewarded to the Team Penske driver.

Another IZOD INDYCAR Series team that scored two cars in the Firestone Fast Six grouping was Andretti Autosport. Andretti Autosport enters the California street course with familiarity on how to get to victory lane after winning the event the past two years. An emotionally-charged 2010 winner of the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach, Ryan Hunter-Reay qualified 3^rd and teammate Canadian James Hinchcliffe locked in a 6^th quickest time.

Despite the dominating efforts of Chevrolet in qualifying, the engine change penalties meant the starting line-up would fall to the advantage of the Honda and Lotus powered Dallara race cars. Dario Franchitti, the only non-Chevrolet runner to break into the Firestone Fast Six, collected a 4^th fastest run in Saturday’s qualifying. With Chevrolet-engined competitors being demoted, the #10 Target Chip Ganassi Racing receives the top starting spot for the 2012 Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach. “In the Firestone Fast 6 we knew where we'd be starting regardless of what time we did, but we kind of wanted to earn it.” said Franchitti.

Oriol Servia recorded the fastest lap recorded for a Lotus-powered IZOD INDYCAR Dallara DW12 for Dreyer and Reinbold Racing with a 1 minute, 10.6835 second timed trip around the street course. 20^th Fastest in time trials, Servia’s and his #22 car will also be assesses their own engine penalty by the sanctioning body that will drop the team to 23^rd starting the Long Beach race.

The Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach, race #3 in the 2012 IZOD INDYCAR Series tour, will be set for about 4:15PM Eastern time (1:15PM Pacific time).


2012 IZOD INDYCAR Series
Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach
Qaulifying Results

Pos #	Car #	Driver	Nationality	Race Team	Engine
1	2	Ryan Briscoe	Australia	Team Penske	Chevrolet
2	12	Will Power	Australia	Team Penske	Chevrolet
3	28	Ryan Hunter-Reay	United States	Andretti Autosport	Chevrolet
4	10	Dario Franchitti	Scotland	Target/Chip Ganassi Racing	Honda
5	5	EJ Viso	Venezuela	KV Racing Technology	Chevrolet
6	27	James Hinchcliffe	Canada	Andretti Autosport	Chevrolet
7	67	Josef Newgarden	United States	Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing	Honda
8	3	Helio Castroneves	Brazil	Team Penske	Chevrolet
9	18	Justin Wilson	England	Dale Coyne Racing	Honda
10	11	Tony Kanaan	Brazil	KV Racing Technology	Chevrolet
11	77	Simon Pagenaud	France	Schmidt-Hamilton Motorsports	Honda
12	9	Scott Dixon	New Zealand	Target/Chip Ganassi Racing	Honda
13	15	Takuma Sato	Japan	Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing	Honda
14	14	Mike Conway	England	AJ Foyt Enterprises	Honda
15	38	Graham Rahal	United States	Chip Ganassi Racing	Honda
16	4	JR Hildebrand	United States	Panther Racing	Chevrolet
17	83	Charlie Kimball	United States	Chip Ganassi Racing	Honda
18	26	Marco Andretti	United States	Andretti Autosport	Chevrolet
19	8	Rubens Barrichello	Brazil	KV Racing Technology	Chevrolet
20	22	Oriol Servia	Spain	Lotus-Dreyer & Reinbold Racing	Lotus
21	98	Alex Tagliani	Canada	Bryan Herta Autosport with Curb Agajanian	Lotus
22	19	James Jakes	England	Dale Coyne Racing	Honda
23	20	Ed Carpenter	United States	Ed Carpenter Racing	Chevrolet
24	7	Sebastien Bourdais	France	Lotus-Dragon Racing	Lotus
25	6	Katherine Legge	England	Lotus-Dragon Racing	Lotus
26	78	Simona de Silvestro	Switzerland	Lotus-HVM Racing	Lotus

Penske, Power Quickest in IZOD INDYCAR Friday Session at Barber

A cloudy, wet weather greeted the 2012 IZOD INDYCAR Series drivers and teams for their first day at Barber Motorsports Park for Sunday‘s Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama. Due to rain that intensified over the course of Friday, the fastest session for the 26 race cars around the 2.3-mile, 17-turn road course occurred in the late morning.

The defending winner of the 2011 Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama with a masterful flag-to-flag victory, Will Power kicked off one day at Barber Motorsports Park with the top time in overall Friday practice. Power’s lap time of 1 minute, 11.2886 seconds was faster than the times from in qualifying for the 2011 race. Power was 21/100ths of a second faster than his Penske Racing teammate and recent St Petersburg victor Helio Castroneves. “The Verizon No. 12 Chevy felt very good this morning before the rain.” said Will Power confident on his ability to repeat at Barber Motosports park. “We have tested here a lot and know the track very well and the set-up very well. We just made minor adjustments to the car because we basically know what we want.” said Power. With two of the three Team Penske Chevrolet entries at the front Friday, the third entry handled by Ryan Briscoe settled for 15^th quickest among the IZOD INDYCAR Series racers.

While the presence of Team Penske at the top of IZOD INDYCAR result sheers is a trend early in the 2012 season, Friday’s remaining top-five fastest lap times threw a surprising curve ball into the year’s second race weekend for the open wheel stars. Recommitting to the IZOD INDYCAR Series schedule for the first time since 2008, the Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing team’s #15 car piloted by Takuma Sato grabbed the third fastest speed for day one. Both cars are powered by Honda engines. In 4^th place in the combined practice results was series rookie of the year Simon contender Josef Newgarden driving for Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing.

Considered to be the teams presenting best chances for challenging the Team Penske juggernaut into the 2012 IZOD INDYCAR Series season, Andretti Autosport and Chip Ganassi Racing both had race cars in the top-10 during Friday practice at Barber Motorsports Park. Andretti Autosports was led by the #26 car of Marco Andretti in 6^th place in the first track session. Planning to mount a stronger race than the season opening effort at St Petersburg, defending IZOD INDYCAR series driver Dario Franchitti logged a 9^th fastest time ahead of an affiliated #38 car driven by Graham Rahal.

Despite rather light track activity at Barber Motorsport Park, several IZOD INDYCAR Series drivers and teams desperate for testing took full advantage of Friday to acquaint themselves with their 2012 Dallaras. Setting the record for Friday laps was the former Formula 1 driver Rubens Barrichello for KV Racing Technology. Logging 34 laps, Barrichello was also fastest around the Barber Motorsports Park course recorded at 5^th fastest amongst the practice times in both practices. “I have only done one test here, but it makes a huge difference compared to last weekend at St. Petersburg.” said Rubens Barrichello. Barrichello’s teammate and fellow Brazilian Tony Kanaan was 7^th quick on Friday in the #11 car. First practice for the IZOD INDYCAR Series ended with Kanaan stopped on track after running out of fuel.

While Tony Kanaan’s event was not severe, the #18 of Justin Wilson did encounter a failure relating to his Honda powerplant driving his Dale Coyne Racing car. The Dale Coyne Racing team has been devoted to replacing a damaged fuel injector in order to preserve their potential grid position earned in Saturday’s qualifying. While Justin Wilson might be saved from loosing starting position, Oriol Servia will suffer the IZOD INDYCAR’s 10-grid spot penalty after the Lotus engine of his #22 car stopped in early in practice.

Simona de Silvestro completed the second-most laps over the course on Friday. In both sessions at Barber Motorsports Park, the #78 Lotus-powered race machine recorded 32 laps with the majority coming in the late morning practice. The Swiss driver’s fastest time was only 20^th on the speed charts leading to desire that the remainder of the Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama weekend could turn the fortunes of de Silvestro and the HVM Racing team. Of the Lotus-powered Dallaras, Sebastien Bourdais recorded the fastest time around the 2.3-mile road course at 1 minute, 12.4818 seconds for Lotus Dragon Racing. With Bourdais in the #7 car for the Lotus Dragon Racing team, rookie teammate Katherine Legge ended the day at the bottom of the IZOD INDYCAR competitor’s time chart for Friday. Legge’s fastest time in the #6 car was more than five seconds off the speed of Will Power.