One of the storylines that troubles the rules makers in motorsports is if dominance sells. Last weekend, we saw two races dominated by two different groups but the result was dominance. On the Saturday portion of the Houston doubleheader, it was the Colombian contingent of drivers mimicking the success of their country’s World Cup team with a sweep of the podium. Sunday saw a team dominate with Schmidt-Peterson scoring their first-ever one-two sweep.
IndyCar
IndyCar – Texas 600: Two-Driver Two-Step
While it’s certainly and advantage to run week in and week out on the IndyCar circuit, that doesn’t mean you have to run every race to succeed. Since the team owner became a part-time driver, the #20 Ed Carpenter Racing car became a threat with road course specialist Mike Conway handling the races with right turns and Ed driving only on the ovals. The results have seen Conway win at Long Beach and Carpenter start the Indy 500 on pole.
So it should come as much of a surprise that the so far winless driver of the #20 car was able to correct that quite quickly. In only his second start of 2014, Ed Carpenter put in a stellar race to pick up his first win of 2014.
IndyCar – Dual in Detroit: A Penske Shootout
Love ’em or hate ’em, these street course doubleheaders sure end up with some exciting racing. While we usually dread Formula One street course races, IndyCar street races tend to be the more exciting of the events that require right turns in addition to the left turns.
The one recurring theme this weekend was Penske. It’s Roger Penske’s event with the first race led from the pole by Helio Castroneves in a Penske car. Therefore, it was only fitting that Will Power and Castroneves drove to victory in Penske cars at Penske’s race.
IndyCar – Indy 500: A First Time for Everything
What constitutes a family curse being broken? The Andretti family curse at the Indianapolis 500 goes back almost 50 years when Mario won his first and only Indianapolis 500-Mile Race. Neither son Michael nor grandson Marco have been able to win the race since then.
Since 1969, the Andrettis have won the 500 twice… as team owners. Michael’s team won the 2005 and 2007 races but he was just an owner. This year was the closest that an Andretti has come to winning the race but not thanks to Marco’s driving. It was Michael calling the shots on the pit box for race winner Ryan Hunter-Reay who picked up the win with a last lap pass of three-time race winner Helio Castroneves.
IndyCar – Indy 500 Qualifying: One Run to Glory
Once again, the bosses of the IndyCar series changed the format for qualifying for the Indianapolis 500. Instead of the top 24 starters locking in on Day One with the remainder of the runners locking in on Bump Day, the drivers had to lock into the field on Day One with the actual grid being set in single-run qualifying on Day Two.
However, the latest change in the qualifying format didn’t change anything from the previous Indy 500 qualifying weekend. When you’re hooked up at Indy, there’s little anyone can do to stop you. Just ask the now twice-defending Indy 500 pole winner Ed Carpenter.
IndyCar – GP of Indianapolis: Go Right, Young Man
In the continuing struggle to reinvent the month of May at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, IndyCar decided that the month should open by turning right instead of left. While we can argue all day as to whether IndyCar should have a road course race at the Speedway, if they can put on an exciting event, it’ll quickly become a new May tradition.
This weekend marked the first step in reinvigorating the month of May as the stars of the IndyCar Series drove clockwise around the Speedway. The three-wide flying start was replaced with a two-wide standing start. And the checkered flag was taken by a Frenchman for only the second time in IMS history as Simon Pagenaud took the checkered flag for his first win of 2014.
IndyCar – Alabama GP: Ryan in the Rain
Neither rain nor severe weather nor standing water stayed the drivers of the IndyCar Series from the swift completion of their appointed round at Barber Motorsports Park. Okay, it did a little as the race was pushed back by over two hours due to a severe rain storm and standing water.
When the race got going, it looked like Will Power was going to storm off into the distance and win his second race of the season. However, as it so often the case in inclement weather, the only person that can beat you is yourself. Power left the track early in the race which allowed Ryan Hunter-Reay to claim the lead and his first win of the season.
IndyCar – Long Beach GP: Where Legends are Born
Long Beach is the most historic road course race in America. It’s the one that everyone wants to win. Even Formula One wants to take it back from IndyCar and they’re only interested in big money and big extravagance which is something that Long Beach doesn’t do to nearly the extent that F1’s newest races.
While Long Beach has a long history of making heroes out of its winners, sometimes, it’s the underdogs that have their day on the streets of the California port. This time out, it was a part-timer driving an oval-specialist’s car taking the checkered flag as Mike Conway won his second Long Beach Grand Prix.
IndyCar – GP of St. Petersburg: Restarts Optional
He may not have had the best first three-quarters of the 2013 IndyCar season but Will Power closed out last season going from 11th in points to 4th. To start the 2014 campaign, he’s picking up where he left off with a win to open up the season by taking the checkered flag in St. Pete.
IndyCar – IndyCar World Championship 500: Third Time’s The Charm
In each of the last four seasons, the last thing you wanted to do was lead the IndyCar championship heading into the final race of the season. In each of the last four seasons, the points leader at the start of the final race is not the points leader at the end of that race. It took the last man to hold his lead through the final race to break that streak as Scott Dixon won the championship after an exciting and tense race.
The Lowdown 