Indycars 2009

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Dario Undefeated In Iowa

USA 21st June 2009 - After taking a year’s sabbatical in stock-car racing, Dario Franchitti returned to Iowa Speedway in triumph at Sunday’s Iowa Corn Indy 250, repeating his win from 2007 in today’s 250-lap contest and closing to within three points of IndyCar Series championship leader, and second-place finisher, Ryan Briscoe.
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As in 2007, Franchitti contented himself with running near the front for the first two-thirds of the race, then asserted himself following the last run of pit stops, carving through traffic to distance himself from Briscoe and establish a comfortable -- by IndyCar standards -- five-second margin of victory.

The win was the 20th for Franchitti in North American open-wheel racing, 10 each in IndyCar and CART competition, and all with Honda power. He continues to be Honda’s most successful driver in Indy-style racing, with Alex Zanardi next on the Honda all-time list with 15 victories.

The 20 drivers in this weekend’s field ran a total of 5,044 miles in practice, qualifying and racing this weekend without a single engine-related failure for the Honda HI9R Indy V-8.

For Briscoe, it was his third consecutive second-place finish of the season which, coupled with his win at the season-opening Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, keeps him at the top of the drivers’ championship point standings after seven races.

Hideki Mutoh led the Andretti Green Racing team today with a third-place finish, following a second-place run here last year in his rookie IndyCar season. Like Franchitti, Mutoh’s Honda Dallara was particularly strong on restarts and he picked up several positions in this fashion in his march up to third from his 11th- place starting position.

Much of the excitement in the early laps came from veteran Tomas Scheckter, making his second start of the season for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing. Using a high line to great effect after starting 16th, Scheckter passed six cars in the opening lap and eventually ran as high as second place until handling issues and a slow pit stop in the closing laps dropped him to a sixth-place finish.

Today’s race in Iowa started a stretch of four consecutive racing weekends for IndyCar drivers and teams. Next week, the series wraps up the “short track” portion of the 2009 season with its second Saturday night race of the year, the June 27 SunTrust Indy Challenge at Virginia’s Richmond International Raceway.
Driver Quotes - Podium
Dario Franchitti: “It’s all a bit of a blur at the moment. This was a very, very physical race with the speeds we run here and the humidity today. Our pit stops were awsome, and really helped us with track position today. We also worked hard on a certain part of the setup. One of the tricks we learned here [winning in] 2007 was how to keep your car fast here throughout a run, especially early on cold tires. We also made a few small changes on our final pit stop that really helped us get through lapped traffic in the final stint and that really helped over the final 50 laps. My dad’s [George Franchitti] not here today -- and he doesn’t miss too many races -- so I just want to say ‘Happy Father’s Day’. This is for him. I wouldn’t be here without my dad’s support.”

Ryan Briscoe: “It was an exciting day. The car was a bit of a handful at the start, but once we made some changes at the first pit stop it was really good the rest of the race. Dario [Franchitti] was perhaps a bit stronger on cold tires, I didn’t have as much for him early in a stint, and he was very quick in traffic. That probably was the difference. My guys did a great job in the pits, but I probably left a bit on the table coming in on that last stop. But we’ll take a second place [result] and the points for most laps led and head off to [the next race at] Richmond.”

Hideki Mutoh: “Iowa Speedway has been very good to me! We finished second here last year and now I get my first podium finish of the season here today. I was able to stay out of trouble and keep gaining track position during the race. My car was very good, especially on restarts, where I was able to make several passes on the track. My guys did a fantastic job in the pits and that got us a few more positions. It was a very good day for us.”
Race Results:
1. Dario Franchitti
2. Ryan Briscoe
3. Hideki Mutoh
4. Dan Wheldon
5. Scott Dixon
6. Tomas Scheckter
7. Helio Castroneves
8. Mike Conway
9. Danica Patrick
10. Ed Carpenter
11. Graham Rahal
12. Marco Andretti
13. Jaques Lazier
DNF Tony Kanaan
DNF Robert Doornbos
DNF Raphael Matos
DNF Mario Moraes
DNF Justin Wilson
DNF Ryan Hunter-Reay
DNF EJ Viso

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Ganassi Duo Dominates Richmond

USA 27th June 2009 - Scott Dixon became the first three-time IndyCar Series race winner in 2009, and teammate Dario Franchitti moved into the series points lead - one point ahead of Dixon - as the Target Chip Ganassi Racing duo dominated Saturday night’s SunTrust Indy Challenge at Richmond International Raceway.
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Starting from the pole, Franchitti led much of the first half of the 300-lap contest, but was caught out by the caution flag as he was entering the pits on Lap 137. Out of fuel, he was forced to stop for a splash of ethanol, and then had to pit again a few laps later for a complete fuel-and-tires pit stop. As a result, teammate Dixon moved into the lead on Lap 140 and would remain in charge to the checkers. Dixon’s 19th career win ties him with former series champion Sam Hornish Jr. for most career IndyCar victories under Indy Racing League sanction.

The 20 drivers in this weekend’s field ran a total of 5,798 miles in practice, qualifying and racing this weekend without a single engine-related failure for the Honda HI9R Indy V-8.

Behind the lead pair, Graham Rahal had his best finish of the 2009 season -- and career-best oval track result -- finishing third for Newman Haas Lanigan Racing. A caution flag on Lap 26 gave Hideki Mutoh and Danica Patrick an opportunity to pit early and go “off sequence” from the leaders in an attempt to gain track position and a possible victory. Mutoh did lead a career-high 74 laps, but finished fourth with Patrick rounding out the top five, the last car on the lead lap.

After a season filled with bad luck and misfortune, E.J. Viso had his first finish of 2009, running as high as seventh on several occasions until falling down the order in the last round of pit stops. Still, his 12thplace result was his first finish of the season.

Meanwhile, after a strong start to 2009, Team Penske had its worst results of the year, with both Ryan Briscoe and Helio Castroneves crashing out of the contest, without injury. Briscoe fell out on Lap 26 and Castroneves on Lap 245, as both unsuccessfully battled handling problems. As a result, Briscoe fell from first to third in the drivers’ championship, while Castroneves remains fourth.

Tonight’s race wrapped up the short-oval portion of the 2009 IndyCar Series schedule. Next week, the series begins the first of three events on road and street courses, starting at historic Watkins Glen International Raceway in upstate New York with the July 5th Camping World Grand Prix at The Glen.
Driver Quotes - Podium
Scott Dixon: “Today was all about patience. It was really tough to pass, very slippery off-line, and that made it a track-position race. I’ve got to hand it to Dario [Franchitti], he was making more passes than anyone tonight. But it was a bit frustrating. I was able to save a bit more fuel than Dario in the first stint, and then we got a break on the yellow [flag] and that got us out in front. It’s a one-two finish for the Target Chip Ganassi team, and a huge points night for us, with both Penske cars not finishing.”

Dario Franchitti: “The timing of the yellow tonight decided the race. My mistake was using too much fuel [early], trying to get a gap, and that ultimately hurt us when the yellow came out just as I was coming into Pit Lane. Once Scott [Dixon] got ahead, we did our best to pass him, but couldn’t get it done. I’m disappointed not to win, but the points lead is a definite bright spot for us. We’ve had a pretty good season so far, and I’m looking forward to going to Watkins Glen next week, and then Toronto.”

Graham Rahal: “When we started off this weekend, the car wasn’t where it needed to be. It didn’t feel very good at all in the first practice. But my engineer Martin [Pare] and I kept plugging away, making changes. I think we made more changes this weekend than ever before, but each one was an improvement. It really speaks volumes for what this team can do. To be standing on the podium on an oval is like a victory for us.
Race Results:
1. Scott Dixon
2. Dario Franchitti
3. Graham Rahal
4. Hideki Mutoh
5. Danica Patrick
6. Tony Kanaan
7. Marco Andretti
8. Raphael Matos
9. Robert Doornbos
10. Dan Wheldon
11. Tomas Scheckter
12. EJ Viso
13. Ed Carpenter
14. Justin Wilson
15. Ryan Hunter-Reay
16. Mario Moraes
DNF Helio Castroneves
DNF Mike Conway
DNF Ryan Briscoe
DNF Jaques Lazier

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Franchitti Prevails to Reclaim Toronto Crown

TORONTO 12th July 2009 - Dario Franchitti recovered from a problematic first pit stop to claim Sunday’s Honda Indy Toronto, his third victory of the 2009, and return to the top of the IndyCar drivers’ championship standings after 10 of 17 races.
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It also was Franchitti’s 21st victory scored with Honda power in CART and IndyCar competition, extending his record as Honda’s most successful open-wheel racer.
Starting from the pole, Franchitti led the first 24 laps around the 1.755-mile street circuit, but a delay changing his left rear wheel during a planned “short fill” stop dropped him to 12th place. The Target Chip Ganassi driver made up three positions on track, and then caught a major break when the yellow caution flag flew on Lap 59, just as he was making his final stop. That enabled Franchitti to resume in second behind Helio Castroneves, who Franchitti passed on Lap 65 as the pair entered Turn 3 at the end of the long Shoreline Drive straight. Franchitti led the rest of the way to claim the win and a narrow, two-point lead in the drivers’ championship over his fourth-finishing teammate, Scott Dixon.

The 23 drivers in this weekend’s field ran a total of 7,149.9 miles in practice, qualifying and racing without a single engine-related failure for the Honda HI9R Indy V-8.

The pair of Canadian drivers in the field gave the large Toronto crowd many exciting moments, as Alex Tagliani led 21 laps for Conquest Racing and local favorite Paul Tracy ran second for most of that same period. However, Tracy would drop out on Lap 65 after colliding with Castroneves as the pair fought for second place. Tagliani would also be delayed by his involvement in a three-car pile-up with Tomas Scheckter and Mario Moraes, but would recover to finish ninth.

Following Franchitti home at the checkers was Ryan Briscoe, notching his fifth second-place finish in the last six races, and teammate Will Power, making the third of a planned seven race starts in a third Team Penske entry. Justin Wilson, winner of last week’s race at Watkins Glen, survived his own instances of contact to finish fifth behind Dixon, while Danica Patrick posted yet another strong road-course performance to climb from 18th on the starting grid to sixth at the finish.

After racing on four consecutive weekends, the IndyCar Series now takes a one-week break before resuming in Canada with the July 26 Rexall Edmonton Indy.
Dario Franchitti (#10 Target Chip Ganassi Racing Honda) Started 1st, finished 1st, 3rd win of 2009, 21st open-wheel racing win, all with Honda power:
“I love coming to Canada. It’s been 10 years since my first victory here [in the 1999 CART race] and it’s great to be back once again. Our car was fast all day, and particularly quick on restarts, and that worked to our advantage several times today. With all the different pit strategies, I got caught behind a lot of slower cars for a long time in the middle stint. But we got a huge break on the last pit stop, with the timing of the yellow flag, and that got us up at the front once again. I could see Helio [Castroneves] was struggling on the ‘Reds’ [alternate compound tires] and once we were past him, it came down to nailing the restarts and not making any mistakes to the end.”
Race Results:
1. Dario Franchitti
2. Ryan Briscoe
3. Will Power
4. Scott Dixon
5. Justin Wilson
6. Danica Patrick
7. Ryan Hunter-Reay
8. Marco Andretti
9. Alex Tagliani
10. Raphael Matos
11. Mario Moraes
12. Hideki Mutoh
13. EJ Viso
14. Dan Wheldon
15. Ed Carpenter

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Power Leads Penske 1-2 Finish

EDMONTON 26th July 2009 - Part-time Team Penske driver Will Power dominated Sunday’s Rexall Edmonton Indy, leading 90 of the 95 laps for his first IndyCar Series victory in just five starts this season, and leading teammate Helio Castroneves to the checkers for a 1-2 Team Penske finish.
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Starting from the pole, Power surrendered the lead only to make his two scheduled stops, and frequently led by as many as six seconds until a full-course caution on the penultimate lap closed the gap to just over one second. The caution, the result of a spin by Tomas Scheckter into the Turn 9 barriers, spoiled what would have been the first caution-free race in IndyCar Series history. Still, the single lap of yellow at the end of the race established a new series record for fewest caution-flag laps.

The 23 drivers in this weekend’s field ran a total of 8,270 miles in practice, qualifying and racing on the runways and taxiways that make up the temporary Edmonton City Centre airport circuit; once again without a single engine-related failure for the Honda HI9R Indy V-8.

Much of the fireworks in today’s race came from the battle for second place between Castroneves and Target Chip Ganassi Racing’s Scott Dixon, with Ryan Briscoe’s Team Penske Honda also freqently in the mix. All three easily out-distanced eventual fifth-place finisher Dario Franchitti.

In the end, a mistake by Briscoe, causing him to brush the wall exiting Turn 9, dropped him back to a fourth-place finish; while Castroneves passed Dixon for the final time on Lap 84, using a “pick” around the lapped car of Ed Carpenter to make his successful move.

Paul Tracy gave his home country fans some excitement early in the race, jumping up from his ninth starting position to sixth on the opening lap, but was unable to advance any further in his KV Racing Honda. In a scary moment, a faulty fuel probe stuck in the open position during Tony Kanaan’s first scheduled pit stop, leading to a fire on board his car and in the Andretti Green Racing pits. With help from crewmembers from the Penske, Ganassi and Panther Racing teams, the fire was quickly extinguished and Kanaan escaped with second degree burns on his hands and minor flash burns to his face and neck.

After three road- and street-course events, the IndyCar Series now heads back to an oval with a Saturday night race August 1 at the 1.5-mile Kentucky Speedway.
Will Power: “That was a perfect weekend: pole position and the win. I was just a great day for us. The car was perfect, the pit stops were flawless and I think we led all but a handful of laps. I’m very grateful to Roger [Penske] and Tim [Cindric, team president] for giving me this opportunity. You couldn’t ask for a better atmosphere to work in with great guys and fantastic teammates. I’m loving every moment of this and hope to be with Team Penske for a long, long time.”

Helio Castroneves: “It was a very physical race today. I had a good battle with Scott [Dixon] early, but after the first pit stop was able to open up a bit of a gap. Then we all got bottled up in lapped traffic, and made an early second stop. I lost time there, and fell back to fourth. But then Ryan had a bit of a problem in Turn 9 and slid wide, and I got past him. That brought me back up to Scott and again we got caught up in traffic. Scott went one way and I went the other and I was able to make a clean move on him for second.”
[B]Race Results:
1. Will Power
2. Helio Castroneves
3. Scott Dixon
4. Ryan Briscoe
5. Dario Franchitti
6. Paul Tracy
7. Graham Rahal
8. Justin Wilson
9. Robert Doornbos
10. Marco Andretti
11. Danica Patrick
12. EJ Viso
13. Alex Tagliani
14. Hideki Mutoh
15. Dan Wheldon
16. Ed Carpenter
17. Ryan Hunter-Reay
18. Raphael Matos
19. Tomas Scheckter
20. Mike Conway

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Dixon Reclaims Points Lead

USA 9th Aug 2009 - A textbook performance by Scott Dixon Sunday at the Honda Indy 200 led to the fourth IndyCar Series victory of the season for the Target Chip Ganassi Racing driver and a return to the top of the championship points table, with just four races remaining.
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Starting third, Dixon saved fuel during the first third of today’s 85-lap run over the 2.25-mile Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, enabling him to pit two laps later than his rivals. Emerging from the first round of pit stops in second place, behind early leader Justin Wilson, Dixon moved into the lead on Lap 34 with a decisive pass as he and Wilson approaced lapped traffic. Dixon went on to command the rest of the race, setting fastest race lap just prior to his second and final pit stop.

During a hot and humid race day, 21 drivers ran a total of 7,546 miles this weekend at Mid-Ohio -- the 44th consecutive IndyCar Series without a single engine-related failure for the Honda HI9R Indy V-8.

Dixon’s strongest rival, Dale Coyne Racing’s Wilson, led for 28 laps after an exciting pass of pole qualifier Ryan Briscoe when the latter briefly slid off-line over the crest of the Turn 8 hill. Wilson went on to build up a six-second lead over Briscoe until the first round of pit stops, and remained in contention until waiting one lap too long before making his second and final stop. Wilson ran out of fuel entering Pit Lane, and the resultant stall before rejoining the race dropped him to an unrepresentative 13th-place finish.

Much of the action in the final laps was provided by the battle between Briscoe and Dario Franchitti for second place, with the pair running nose-to-tail for much of the final 20 laps. However, Franchitti was unable to mount a successful passing attempt and took the checkers just over two-tenths of a second behind Briscoe.

Ryan Hunter-Reay had his best IndyCar result since moving from Vision Racing in June, finishing fourth for A.J. Foyt Racing. Andretti Green Racing’s Hideki Mutoh rounded out the top five finishers, holding off teammate Marco Andretti for this third top-five result of the season, and best since finishing fourth at Richmond in June.

The IndyCar Series now takes a one-week break before heading west to California for the final road-race event of the season, the August 23 Indy Grand Prix of Sonoma County at Infineon Raceway.
Scott Dixon: “What a day. I can’t say anything more about the team, they gave me such a great car. It’s great to finally win on a road course this year, and fantastic to have the points lead once more and that 20th career win. And we had passing at Mid-Ohio! Justin [Wilson] was pretty quick in the early going, and we were bottled up for a bit behind Ryan . But once I was up to second, I was able to use lapped traffic as a bit of a “pick” and get around him. Then our car was so good on the primary [black] tires, it all came down to hitting my marks and not making any mistakes to the finish.”
[B]RACE RESULTS:
1. Scott Dixon
2. Ryan Briscoe
3. Dario Franchitti
4. Ryan Hunter-Reay
5. Hideki Mutoh
6. Marco Andretti
7. Paul Tracy
8. Graham Rahal
9. Raphael Matos
10. Tony Kanaan
11. Oriol Servia
12. Helio Castroneves
13. Justin Wilson
14. Robert Doornbos
15. EJ Viso
16. Dan Wheldon
17. Ed Carpenter
18 Richard Antinucci
19. Danica Patrick

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USA 23rd Aug 2009 - Target Chip Ganassi Racing’s Dario Franchitti completely controlled Sunday’s Indy Grand Prix of Sonoma, leading from start to finish over the rolling hills of Infineon Raceway en route to his fourth IndyCar Series victory of 2009.
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It was only the second time in IndyCar Series history that a race has been led throughout by a single driver. Franchitti’s teammate, Scott Dixon, is the only other IndyCar driver to accomplish this feat, at Richmond International Raceway in 2003.

But Franchitti had a shadow in the form of Team Penske’s Ryan Briscoe, who matched his every move throughout the 75-lap contest to finish second, just 0.24 seconds behind the winner, and reclaiming the drivers’ championship points lead with three races remaining.

Starting on the the front row, Franchitti and Briscoe were ahead of a multi-car bumping and barging incident on the opening lap, which affected or delayed at least nine cars including Dixon, who came into Infineon with a three-point lead in the championship. But the first-lap incident, and contact with Marco Andretti on the final lap, dropped Dixon to 13th at the checkers and third in the championship standings, 20 points behind new leader Briscoe. With his fourth win of the year and bonus points for the pole and leading the most laps; Franchitti moves up to second, just four points out of the lead.

Behind the leaders -- who included Helio Castroneves until a suspension failure and the resulting late- race spin ended his day -- battles raged throughout the field.

Hideki Mutoh ran fourth for much of the race, until a late-race passing attempt on Briscoe for second went awry and Mutoh was in turn passed by Mike Conway and Mario Moraes, both of whom had their best finishes of 2009. Conway’s third-place result was his first IndyCar podium finish, while today’s race for Moraes was the first for the KV Racing driver since the death of his father just over two weeks ago.

Oriol Servia finished sixth in his second race for Newman Haas Lanigan Racing, but only after holding off a determined Justin Wilson for the final 20 laps. Wilson, winner at the Watkins Glen road course in July, started at the back of the field as part of a calculated race strategy that allowed him to use an extra set of softer Firestone “Red” alternate tires. Starting 22nd, Wilson made spectacular progress through the field during the first 50 laps, coming up just short of a top-six result.

Today’s race concludes the road-racing portion of the 2009 IndyCar schedule. Next week, the series returns to the ovals for the final three races of the season, starting August 29 with the Peak Indy 300 at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, Ill.
Dario Franchitti: “It was a great day for us. Track position was so important, and qualifying on the pole was critical as well. There were a couple of ‘interesting’ moments, mainly with some of the lapped traffic, but I did what I had to do, and my boys did a great job in the pits, as always. I’m feeling pretty good about our [championship] chances. We’ll finish the title chase on three ovals and both Target cars are in the running. It’s not going to be easy, but I like our chances.”

Ryan Briscoe: “The championship is coming down to these last few races. If we’re going to win it, we’re going to have to do well in the upcoming [final three] ovals. If we keep our heads down and continue to run strongly, the wins will come for us.”
RACE RESULTS:
1. Dario Franchitti Ganassi
2. Ryan Briscoe Penske
3. Mike Conway Dreyer & Reinbold
4. Mario Moraes KV
5. Hideki Mutoh AGR
6. Oriol Servia NHLR
7. Justin Wilson Dale Coyne
8. Tony Kanaan AGR
9. Raphael Matos Luczo Dragon
10. Robert Doornbos HVM
11. Ed Carpenter Vision
12. Dan Wheldon Panther
13. Scott Dixon Ganassi
14. Marco Andretti AGR
15. Richard Antinucci 3G
16. Danica Patrick AGR
17. Milka Duno Dreyer & Reinbold

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Dixon Wins at Motegi

JAPAN 19th Sept 2009 - A 1-2 finish for Target Chip Ganassi Racing’s Scott Dixon and Dario Franchitti Saturday at Twin Ring Motegi, combined with a disastrous incident exiting the pit lane for Team Penske’s Ryan Briscoe, set up a championship-deciding season finale for the 2009 IndyCar Series next month at Homestead-Miami Speedway in Florida.
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While there was little to separate the Ganassi teammates on the race track, Dixon won the crucial battle in the pits, exiting ahead of Franchitti after two of the three stops each made during the course of the Indy Japan 300, including the crucial final stop on Lap 153. At the finish, Dixon led his teammate by just over 1.4 seconds for a series-leading fifth victory of the season. The win gives Dixon a five-point lead over Franchitti, and an eight-point edge on Briscoe, going the final round of the 17-race championship, scheduled for October 10.

For Briscoe, what started out as a huge break -- running a surprising four laps longer than his rivals during the race’s second segment, then pitting just as the yellow flag waved for Mike Conway’s crash -- instead became his undoing. Instead of resuming with the lead, Briscoe lost control exiting his pit box, and his Honda Dallara swung left into the wall at Pit-Out, damaging his left-front suspension and leading to a long stop for repairs. He would eventually resume to finish 18th, 15 laps down to the leaders.

The 300-mile contest at the Honda-owned Twin Ring Motegi circuit capped another weekend of reliable performance for the Honda Indy V-8 engine, with 23 drivers and teams recording 10,073.04 miles of practice, qualifying and racing, once again with 100 percent reliability.

Early in the race, second-year IndyCar racer Mario Moraes battled with the leaders. But a troubled first pit stop, when Moraes barely missed his marks in Pit Lane and lost time as his KV Racing team struggled to get him refueled, dropped him from contention for the win. Moraes finished fifth, just behind Newman Haas Lanigan teammates Graham Rahal and Oriol Seriva, who briefly contested third place in the closing laps before Servia ceded the position to Rahal.

In another inter-team duel, defending race winner Danica Patrick battled her Andretti Green Racing teammate, Marco Andretti, for sixth place throughout the final third of the race. Dan Wheldon ran as high as third in the middle stages, but lost ground by pitting under green on Lap 151, just before a crash by Ryan Hunter-Reay allowed all other lead-lap cars to pit under the resulting caution. Wheldon would finish seventh as a result, just ahead of Luczo Dragon Racing’s Raphael Matos.

The 2009 IndyCar Series now returns to the U.S.A. boasting the second-closest first-though-third battle in series history. The championship-deciding season finale takes place “under the lights” on Saturday night, October 10 at Homestead-Miami Speedway in Florida.
Scott Dixon: “That’s definitely what we needed today. Dario was very quick early on; we had to add some front wing and change the tire pressures to improve the car at our first pit stop. But those changes really worked, and now we go to Homestead with a real shot at the championship. It’s just a tremendous day for Team Target.”
Race Results:
1. Scott Dixon
2. Dario Franchitti
3. Graham Rahal
4. Oriol Servia
5. Mario Moraes
6. Danica Patrick
7. Marco Andretti
8. Dan Wheldon
9. Raphael Matos
10. Helio Castroneves
11. Tony Kanaan
12. Justin Wilson
13. Ed Carpenter
14. Hideki Mutoh
15. EJ Viso
16. Robert Doornbos
17. Kosuke Matsuura
18. Ryan Briscoe
19. Stanton Barrett
20. Roger Yasukawa

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In a fitting finish to the 2009 IndyCar Series championship, title contenders Dario Franchitti, Scott Dixon and Ryan Briscoe ran away from the rest of the 23-car starting field, and battled among themselves for the race victory and drivers’ championship Sunday at Homestead-Miami Speedway. http://www.australiancardirectory.com.au/upl_images/A_Indy%20Rd17_1b.jpg
Under hot and very humid conditions that tested both man and machine, Franchitti prevailed by adopting a fuel strategy that ensured he could complete the race with just three pit stops, while both of his rivals had to make a final “splash and go” stop in the closing laps. As a result, Franchitti swept into the lead for the final time on Lap 195 and held on for his fifth race win of 2009, and second IndyCar championship in the last three years.

This evening’s season-concluding 300-mile contest capped another weekend -- and a fourth consecutive season -- of reliable performance for the Indy V-8 engine. Throughout 2009, a total of 40 drivers completed more than 202,210 miles of practice, qualifying and racing, with only a single in-race engine failure. That sole failure was the result of a broken alternator wire aboard Ryan Hunter-Reay’s car at Infineon Raceway in August.

For the fourth consecutive season, Honda powered the entire 33-car Indianapolis 500 starting field, and for a record-extending fourth consecutive year -- and the only four times in Indy 500 history -- there was not a single engine failure. In addition, 19 of the 20 cars running at the end of this year’s ‘500’ were on the lead lap, another testament to Honda’s efforts in providing reliable and equal IndyCar Series engines.

At the green, Dixon, Franchitti and Briscoe established their dominance over the field, quickly pulling away from all challengers and lapping the rear of the field as early as Lap 21. By the first round of pit stops, only 10 cars were on the lead lap and by the end of the 200-lap contest even fourth-finishing Tony Kanaan was one lap down.

Dixon and Briscoe traded the lead repeatedly through the event, but Franchitti battled handling issues in the early laps that were only cured during his first pit stop. However, by then his team had already elected to adopt a conservation strategy and -- barring a yellow-flag caution period -- Franchitti could then continue to run a safe third and wait for his rivals to make their fourth and final stops.

In the end, it was a caution-free race -- the first in IndyCar Series history -- and the average speed of 201.420 mph was the second-fastest in series history. All of which played into Franchitti’s hands as the Scot followed up his 2007 championship -- he spent the 2008 season in NASCAR competition -- with the 2009 title.

Kanaan’s inspiring drive from 15th on the grid to fourth at the checkers moved him up two positions in the final drivers’ championship standings, to sixth, just behind his Andretti Green Racing teammate, Danica Patrick, who was eliminated from today’s contest following a pit-lane collision with Dan Wheldon.

Helio Castroneves rebounded from a crash in practice, caused by suspension failure, to finish fifth; with Hideki Mutoh rounding out the top six. Luczo Dragon Racing’s Raphael Matos had a disappointing run to finish 14th, four laps down, but still secured series Rookie of the Year honors.

This evening’s race concluded the 2009 IndyCar Series. The 2010 season opens March 14 in Brazil, with the first domestic race taking place March 28 at the Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg.
Driver Quotes - Podium
Dario Franchitti (#10 Target Chip Ganassi Racing Honda): “Our car wasn’t quite ‘there’ during our first stint, while [teammate] Scott [Dixon] was really, really quick. So we made the decision early to start saving fuel and go with that [fuel conservation] strategy. As it turned out, we made some minor changes at our first pit stop, and our car was really quick after that, probably as good as Scott or Ryan . But now, we were commited to our strategy and we stuck with it. It was a gamble, but obviously it paid off for us in the best possible way. After the checker, we ran completely out of fuel while I was trying to do ‘donuts’ around the track. I told my guys I need to work on the donuts, but we were OK on the fuel strategy! Ten years ago this month, I was battling Juan Pablo Montoya for the CART Championship and it also came down to the final race of the year. I didn’t win, but that became irrelevant when we lost my good friend, Greg Moore, that day. This win is for him.”

[B]Ryan Briscoe (#6 Team Penske Honda): “In one way, it’s pretty frustrating because I think I drove the hardest race of my life today. But you know, you can’t be too disappointed. We gave it everything we had and it was an excellent season for us, one of the best in my career. But both Dario [Franchitti] and Scott [Dixon] were excellent all season long, and Dario certainly earned his title. We just have to come back stronger and get them next year.”

Scott Dixon (#9 Target Chip Ganassi Racing Honda): “It was a fantastic race and a fantastic season. Dario [Franchitti] deserved the title; he drove great all season long. Still, it IS disappointing to finish second in the championship, but it’s great for Dario and just a tremendous day for Team Target. You can look back and play the ‘what if’ game all night long, but that doesn’t change the outcome. I’m already looking forward to 2010.”
RACE RESULTS:
1.Dario Franchitti (Target Chip Ganassi)
2.Ryan Briscoe (Team Penske)
3.Scott Dixon (Target Chip Ganassi)
4.Tony Kanaan (Andretti Green Racing)
5.Helio Castroneves (Team Penske)
6.Hideki Mutoh (Andretti Green Racing)
7.Mario Moraes (KV Racing Technology)
8.Alex Lloyd-R (Newman Haas Lanigan)
9.Tomas Scheckter (Dreyer & Reinbold Racing)
10.Justin Wilson (Dale Coyne Racing)
11.Graham Rahal (Newman Haas Lanigan)
12.Ed Carpenter (Vision Racing)
13.Ryan Hunter-Reay (A.J. Foyt Racing)
14.Raphael Matos-R (Luczo Dragon Racing)
15.Mike Conway-R (Dreyer & Reinbold Racing)
16.E.J. Viso (HVM Racing)
17.Milka Duno (Dreyer & Reinbold Racing)
18.Sarah Fisher (Sarah Fisher Racing)
19.Danica Patrick (NAndretti Green Racing)
20.Robert Doornbos-R (HVM Racing)
21.Dan Wheldon (Panther Racing)
22.Marco Andretti (Andretti Green Racing)
23.Jaques Lazier (Curb/Agajanian/Team 3G)