All-purpose open-wheel (F1, IRL) racing thread

I don’t watch a lot of Indycar, but I can’t remember the last time I saw a car get that high and land on its wheels.

 

The Wright Brothers would have been impressed with Colton Herta's hang time. Thank goodness for the aeroscreens. Couple of the accidents tonight might have had much worse outcomes, especially if Power's tire landed square on his helmet.

 

One ongoing story of this IndyCar season: terrible pit stops.

And as much as I'd like to see James Hinchcliffe still racing, he is a natural in the booth or in the pits.

 

I was stunned to see a Team Penske crew completely screw the pooch on Power's stop. Not getting a wheel nut tight? Inexcusable. As you said, lots of sloppy pit work up and down pit road.

I was amazed Pagenaud had so much fuel left that he did burnouts and a victory lap. I really thought he and Dixon were in trouble with so many laps left, but apparently the long caution for the Herta flyover paid off. I was certain Oliver Askew and Pato O'Ward were destined for a 1-2 finish.

Should be an interesting Race 2, now that everybody has a pretty good feel for the conditions and setups. I expect Newgarden will set the pace, but you could see how valuable fresh tires were. Somebody might steal one tonight if there's a late race restart.

And it's embarrassing how bad the iconic No. 14 has run. I'd rather Foyt Enterprises retire with dignity than be a field-filler, ride-buyer, start-and-park team.

 

As I recall Newagrden was burned by a bad stop in one of the Road America races.

I really thought Rossi was going to be the guy making a charge at the end but Pagenaud literally had enough left in the tank.

 

Rossi's strategy was excellent but the car never responded to the final set of tires. He was just holding on for dear life those last 20 laps.

 

Just put him wherever I'm least likely to hear him called "The Mayor of Hinchtown."

(On a side note, it speaks poorly of everyone involved that Paul Tracy is still part of the broadcast team.)

 

If I have a choice of which Canadian I want in the booth I will take The Mayor of Hinchtown (sorry, my brother) over the Thrill from West Hill any day.

 

Did qualifying get rained out in Hungary today? My DVR didn't record it, which usually means it was postponed. I hesitate to Google it and spoil the results if they ran it.

 

They ran it.

 

Thanks. Hmm. Now I have I have to find a way to see it even though it didn't record.

 

ESPN Watch FTW.