Oilpressure

The Bitnile.com Grand Prix of Portland started off with only a hint of the chaos that sometimes ensues with the first turn of the first lap. Once everyone made it through, we watched as cars jockeyed for position on the 1.964-mile twelve-turn natural terrain road course. That lasted a couple of laps, until Callum Ilott and Romain Grosjean got together on the backstretch, with Grosjean catching the worst of it. Although he pitted for ten laps before returning to the track, Grosjean’s day was pretty much over at that point.

Unfortunately, that was most of the excitement we would see in yesterday’s race until about twenty laps to go. As the battle at the front shaped up to be a battle of Chip Ganassi Racing teammates, Scott Dixon and Alex Palou, there was not a great deal of drama. We all knew that if Palou finished third or higher, Dixon would be eliminated from the championship – meaning that Alex Palou would win his second NTT IndyCar Series Championship.

That’s pretty much what happened, as Palou led 69 of the 110 scheduled laps. The only drama coming was when a controversial caution allowed Felix Rosenqvist to slip in ahead of Dixon for second. More on that later.

Between Lap 5 and Lap 85, there was not a ton to get overly excited about. There was a Colton Herta speeding penalty, a loose right-rear wheel for Marcus Armstrong and contact between Alexander Rossi and Marcus Ericsson that forced Rossi to display his superb set of driving skills to avoid massive chaos.

In the end, it was Alex Palou hoisting not one, but two first-place trophies. First he received the trophy for winning the race, then he was presented the Aston Challenge Trophy for winning the championship – the first time in seventeen years the championship was clinched before the final race of the season. It was a bittersweet celebration as Barry Wanser, Palou’s strategist for the past three years, was not able to be with the team. Wanser had cancer surgery this past week, and will miss the final two races. Please keep the Wanser family in your prayers. They’ve been through a lot. We all hope to see him back on the pit stand next spring.

TV Coverage: I thought NBC had a very good weekend overall, the guys in the booth were fine, although even they seemed a little bored during the race. They did one thing I found a little curious – on Lap 93 with seventeen laps to go, they started a “Through the Field” segment – an exercise they always go through when the race hits a lull. What was odd was the timing that late in the race. What was even more odd was they didn’t start with the leader as they usually do. They started with fifth-place Josef Newgarden.

I was also a little disappointed with James Hinchcliffe’s Hot Seats segment, when he interviewed the Bus Bros – Scott McLaughlin and Josef Newgarden. Hinchcliffe and McLaughlin are especially funny and both share a very dry sense of humor. I was expecting this to be a riot, and it just sort of laid there…festering.

But NBC shined with their camera work throughout the weekend. During Qualifying, they were able to capture Romain Grosjean getting out of the car after failing to advance out of Round One. Grosjean was barking at his team, but the camera showed the team giving it right back to him. It was not a good look for driver or team, but was great camerawork by NBC. In the race, they had a camera placed just inside Turn One. I’m not sure if it was manned or robotic, but it got some unbelievable shots as the cars passed by closely.

The National Anthem: For the most part, we’ve experienced some very good renditions of our National Anthem this IndyCar season. Unfortunately, that was not the case on Sunday. It seems that anyone who is able to put the phrase “Nashville recording artist” in front of their name is offered a chance to sing the National Anthem for a major sporting event. IndyCar, NASCAR, NFL, MLB or NHL – they have all fallen victim recently to performances ranging from mediocre to bad to horrendous. Yesterday’s performance was so off-key and underwhelming, I think I saw a couple of drivers suppressing laughter and making snide remarks to the person next to them.

Some take offense to my critiques of the National Anthem, saying if I can’t stand up and sing, then I shouldn’t complain. First of all, I’ve never been asked. Second of all; if I was asked, I would decline, knowing my limitations as a singer – something many of these so-called performers are unaware of. Third, I can’t really cook – but I sure know a good meal from a bad one.

No Review? Alex Palou was leading when he pitted on Lap 48. When he exited pit lane, he was just in front of Helio Castroneves. Helio tried to pass him two or three times, with Palou seemingly blocking Castroneves twice, and maybe even three times. Every time Castroneves went to one side, Palou would react and move over – which sounds like the textbook definition of blocking to me. The booth all thought it was very egregious and were assuming that it was under review from Race Control. Townsend Bell wondered out loud if Race Control would enforce the penalty, since it had the potential to affect the championship.

Later on, we learned that Race Control never even had the incident under review. I noticed the alleged block as it happened, before the TV crew said anything. When the NBC guys saw it and thought it was obvious, I thought we were really in for some controversy. When they said it was never even under review, it made me wonder if I was watching the same race as Race Control.

Manipulating Yellows: The lack of a review, was not the only gaffe that Race Control experienced yesterday. Once again, Race Control toyed with the timing of throwing a full-course caution. Agustin Canapino suffered what looked like brake failure as he careened out of control through several turns; before coming to a rest in a vulnerable spot, not too far from the racing surface. Common sense would dictate that either the caution flag should come out immediately, or a local yellow should be declared in order to get Canapino and his car out of harms way.

Felix Rosenqvist was on a strategy that would have him pitting last – after everyone else had completed their last stop. Townsend Bell even noted that Rosenqvist was going to be exposed to the danger zone later on in the race, when he pitted on Lap 58. Sure enough, he was the only one who had not pitted when Canapino had his incident. In the past, it would’ve been tough luck for Rosenqvist. But in this day and age where Race Control decides it’s OK to play freely with yellow flags and red flags, anything goes.

The race stayed green, leaving Canapino exposed to cars racing in anger – until they threw the yellow just after Rosenqvist entered pit lane. Scott Dixon had pitted on Lap 81 and was counting on Rosenqvist coming out on cold tires, and Dixon being able to overtake him. By throwing the caution as Rosenqvist entered the pits, Dixon had to slow with the rest of the field and never got the chance to overtake him. Had Race Control thrown the caution when the incident took place, Rosenqvist would’ve been stuck and probably relegated to fifteenth or lower. It only cheated Dixon out of one position, but at the time – he was still fighting for the championship, where every point mattered.

This is not the first time that Race Control has played with the timing of a yellow, by leaving a car in a vulnerable position. This is an accident waiting to happen. So far, the worst outcome has been to anger a few drivers adversely affected by this practice and to infuriate some fans and commentators. But one of these days, they are going to delay a yellow, thinking they are helping preserve a driver’s race – but the car left in a dangerous spot is going to be struck by an errant car at speed. If they continue to follow this practice, it will eventually happen. I hope that the worst outcome when that happens is a couple of banged up race cars, and not something far worse than that.

I wish they would stop this practice, before it comes to that. Ill-timed yellows are a part of racing. They happen. That is part of the unknown intrigue of a race, hoping the team you follow can avoid such pitfalls and bring their driver in before that happens. By following this practice, Race Control is eliminating a lot of strategizing.

This is very similar to when the DH was first allowed in baseball. It removed a lot of strategy from the American League. Now it has permeated the game and the baseball is not better for it. IndyCar needs to abandon this practice for two reasons – it’s unsafe and it removes a lot of pit strategy. Quite honestly, I can’t think of a single reason to do it. It’s very simple – if a situation calls for a caution flag, throw it immediately. If not, keep the race green.

Where was Rahal? Graham Rahal won the pole for the second time in three races. He led from the start and built a nice lead over second-place Scott McLaughlin. He clearly had a fast car and it looked like he would be a factor all day. But after he pitted on Lap 22, we never really heard from him again. Like half of the drivers, he started on the red alternates. That could have been his problem right there, because the Top-Five finishing cars all started on the black primary tires. Of all the drivers that started on reds, none stayed out until Lap 22. I really thought that once the pit stops cycled through, Rahal would be back on top. It never happened. Rahal finished a very forgettable twelfth.

Lots of Marbles: It’s been a popular rant among fans this season that Firestone needs to do something about how quickly their tires degrade. Long before red-alternates were ever introduced and as far back as when Goodyear was the sole tire supplier, off-line marbles have always been a problem in the turns. Marbles have been as much of a part of IndyCar racing as dealing with back-markers. It’s just part of the sport, and I’ve defended Firestone (and always will).

Yesterday, however; I noticed something you don’t normally see – marbles on the straightaways. When the camera showed the head-on shot of the cars on the backstretch near the fence that borders the water on the other side; you could see a definitely line or path that the cars were using. On each side of the path, was a very visible field of marbles. Have I missed something? In all my years of following this sport, I’ve never seen such a visible pile of marbles along a straightaway. They are normally reserved for the outside of a turn. Have I been blind to this over the years, or is this a new phenomenon?

Drive of the Day: There were several good drives that kind of slipped under the radar of the race broadcast. I looked at several candidates and took a lot of things under consideration; such as how many cars they passed, how far back they started and even what team they drive for. For the first time ever, I am declaring a tie for this very prestigious award (it’s so prestigious, no one knows they are getting it).

Some will say that there are no ties in racing, you have to have a winner. That’s not entirely true, as the Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year has ended in a tie no less than five times. If they can do it, so can I.

My co-winners for this week are Rinus VeeKay, who started thirteenth and finished sixth; and David Malukas, who started twenty-third and finished eighth. Both have had frustrating seasons, but they both had outstanding drives on Sunday.

All in All: Sometimes the start of this race can bring chaos and some crazy results. That didn’t happen Sunday. Once we got past the first yellow on Lap Three, there was not a whole lot of action. As is the case when three-fourths of the race is boring, it had some action near the end. Watching Alex Palou cruise to his fifth win of the season and his second championship, is not overly exciting. I can appreciate what he has done, but it wasn’t exactly scintillating television.

What it has done, however, is open up the possibility of an exciting race next week at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, which has been repaved and will produce record-speeds. Palou has secured his championship and Scott Dixon has locked up second-place. McLaughlin and Newgarden are still battling for third in the championship; but with the championship already decided – everyone will just be going for a race win. It will almost be like the exhibition non-points race at Surfers Paradise in 2008, where no one has anything to lose and no one is thinking about points. That could be very entertaining.

I hope everyone has a safe and enjoyable Labor Day holiday!

George Phillips

This entry was posted on September 4, 2023 at 4:03 am and is filed under IndyCar. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.