California Sunshine: Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey
The NTT IndyCar series returned to WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca a little earlier in the calendar this year forgoing the typical end-of-season race in September.
This stop on the calendar would mark the end of an era rather than the end of the season. Going forward after Monterey IndyCar will switch to hybrid engines representing a rarity in motorsports of changing significant engine technology mid-way through a season with a tight championship struggle under way. Hybrid power units will debut at the next stop at the Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio.
Unlike what has become boring and tedious on-track action in F1, Indycar race outcomes are mostly unpredictable as the series saw six different winners in the first eight races before arriving in Monterey. IndyCar is also attempting to cash in on the popularity of F1’s “Drive to Survive” how on Netflix with an IndyCar behind the scenes focused docu-series called 100 Days to Indy now in its second season. The NTT IndyCar series has the glitz and glam as well as the drama that the modern motorsport fan seeks out, but importantly outcomes are never determined in the opening few laps. The current grid includes several former Formula 1 pilots such as Romain Grosjean and Marcus Ericsson, as well as drivers that have competed in the 24 Hours of Lemans and the 24 Hours of Daytona.
Six time IndyCar champion Scott Dixon climbs out of his Chip Ganassi Racing #9 Honda. Only a few weeks before Dixon was competing at the 24 hours of Lemans.
For the fans, IndyCar remains an accessible sport where an admission ticket gets one into the paddock and up close to the machines and their drivers. Ticket prices have gone up over the years (hasn’t everything?) but are still within the realm of possibility and far below Formula 1’s steep financial point of entry.
New Shoes
Alex Palou would start from the pole position, but things would unravel, although temporarily. Kyle Kirkwood started in second position and by the time the field exited the Andretti hairpin he would make a move around Alex Palou and take first place.
The first round of pit stops would further shuffle the front of the pack with Arrow McLaren driver Alexander Rossi taking the lead until a full course caution came out sparking a second round of pit stops and Alex Palou would recover from the first lap and find himself in the lead once again when the caution period ended. It was still premature to determine a winner as teams were using different tire and fuel strategies making those running up front questioning whether they should be on the strategy of those a few places back in the field.
With 21 laps to go in a very tight field, another yellow would pop out due to some contact and spin from Chip Ganassi Racing driver Marcus Armstrong. The field would bunch up again under yellow for a 17-lap shootout to determine a winner… except another caution would come out with 13 laps to go when Jack Harvey suffered mechanical issues and stopped his car near the exit of pit lane.
Alex Palou’s scooter skills are unable to out maneuver the camera.
The restart would occur with 10 laps remaining with the top 5 of Palou, Herta, Rossi, Grosjean and Newgarden all ready to take advantage of any mistake by the other. Only a lap later, Kyffin Simpson of Chip Ganassi Racing would have some contact and spin across the track and take a hit from Graham Rahal of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing putting them out of the race and bringing about another caution and restart.
With 4 laps to go Palou in the Chip Ganassi Racing #10 DHL Honda would control the pace and quickly build a one-second lead which quickly became nearly two seconds. The bright yellow DHL car made it easy for fans to follow Palou’s efforts around Laguna Seca and a signal to competitors that they could see him but never get close enough to touch.
Palou’s victory enters him into the history of drivers who have mastered the famous road course as this was his second victory at the track and his fourth podium. He would leave the weekend leading the championship.
WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca always serves as a measuring stick of racecraft for the IndyCar series. A win requires grit and guile and a team with the right strategy. Palou, a two-time IndyCar champion with his consistent and mature drive at Laguna Seca continues to show potential to go down as a legend in IndyCar. While he has yet to capture the win at the Indy 500 it only seems a matter of time. Perhaps his biggest fault in the weekend and in his career is he makes it look to easy.
Final Results
1. (1) Alex Palou, Honda, 95, Running
2. (4) Colton Herta, Honda, 95, Running
3. (5) Alexander Rossi, Chevrolet, 95, Running
4. (8) Romain Grosjean, Chevrolet, 95, Running
5. (2) Kyle Kirkwood, Honda, 95, Running
6. (10) Scott Dixon, Honda, 95, Running
7. (15) Will Power, Chevrolet, 95, Running
8. (9) Pato O’Ward, Chevrolet, 95, Running
9. (17) Santino Ferrucci, Chevrolet, 95, Running
10. (18) Marcus Ericsson, Honda, 95, Running
11. (3) Felix Rosenqvist, Honda, 95, Running
12. (23) Nolan Siegel, Chevrolet, 95, Running
13. (21) Christian Rasmussen, Chevrolet, 95, Running
14. (24) Pietro Fittipaldi, Honda, 95, Running
15. (6) Christian Lundgaard, Honda, 95, Running
16. (12) David Malukas, Honda, 95, Running
17. (16) Linus Lundqvist, Honda, 95, Running
18. (13) Agustin Canapino, Chevrolet, 95, Running
19. (14) Josef Newgarden, Chevrolet, 95, Running
20. (25) Sting Ray Robb, Chevrolet, 94, Running
21. (7) Scott McLaughlin, Chevrolet, 93, Running
22. (11) Marcus Armstrong, Honda, 93, Running
23. (22) Kyffin Simpson, Honda, 86, Contact
24. (19) Graham Rahal, Honda, 86, Contact
25. (26) Jack Harvey, Honda, 82, Mechanical
26. (20) Rinus VeeKay, Chevrolet, 71, Mechanical
27. (27) Luca Ghiotto, Honda, 34, Contact
Winner’s average speed: 102.740 mph; Time of race: 2 hours, 4 minutes, 9.8545 seconds; Margin of victory: 1.9780 seconds; Cautions: Five for 14 laps; Lead changes: Seven among five drivers. Lap leaders: Kirkwood 1-24; Palou 25-26; Rossi 27-36; Palou 37-55; Herta 56-63; Palou 64-69; Newgarden 70-74; Palou 75-95.
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