Round 18 - Fontana, CA
'Super Cali Power Fantastic, Aleshin Crash Was Atrocious'
Will Power finally became the Verizon Indycar Series champion after years of despair, Tony Kanaan took his first win since joining Ganassi ahead of team mate Scott Dixon, with Ed Carpenter taking third in the final race of his teams current guise. The event was marred after a big accident involving Mikhail Aleshin and Charlie Kimball in final practice which left the Russian hospitalised with a number of broken bones and fractures. We wish him well for a speedy recovery and hope to see him back on track in 2015.
Contributors this week were Niko Gouloumis, Greig Cardwell, Kieran Mallen, Craig Woollard, George O'Donnell, Adrian Rickard, Richard Topham and Jon McLean.
Contributors this week were Niko Gouloumis, Greig Cardwell, Kieran Mallen, Craig Woollard, George O'Donnell, Adrian Rickard, Richard Topham and Jon McLean.
With only one caution period in the 500 mile race, as well as minimal incidents at the other others, what do you put this down to? Luck, have the drivers master the cars on ovals, or something else?
NG - A bit of everything, but a high standard seems to be in evidence. Indy and Pocono took a long time to go yellow too, that's not just luck.
GC - I think it's mainly down to the drives mastering the track. Throughout the race we saw different lanes been taken without cars spinning. Whether or not it this is an occurrence on just this oval remains to be seen.
KM - I think it is due to pack racing being less common with the DW12. There is, thankfully, less opportunity for silly and unnecessary incidents.
CW - A combination of a highly-skilled field, improvements on the reliability side of the DW12 chassis and a bit of luck too.
GOD - It seems like it's difficult to find the limit of performance for the DW12, but it isn't too hard to drive around at 95% of the limit of performance. If there was more disparity between the cars and more unreliability then there would be more cautions.
AR - This is the third year now running the DW12 and maybe the core of drivers who have run all those years have become comfortable and in a sense mastered the car. The addition of areo kits for 2015 could freshen up the challenge for teams and drivers to get the very best out of the car.
RT - Reliability seems a lot better and maybe drivers are trying to make progress using strategy as running behind a car into a corner seems to be more difficult now with tires 'going off' quicker.
JM - Probably a combination of luck, mastering the DW12 on the ovals and the fact we had two 500 mile races with only 21 starters and three other oval races with 22 so that's less traffic for the drivers to deal with than in several years; that doesn't explain the Indy 500, mind. You could also argue that perhaps this is one of the strongest IndyCar fields in a decade so the driving is going to be of a fairly high quality. Maybe it's all coincidence.
GC - I think it's mainly down to the drives mastering the track. Throughout the race we saw different lanes been taken without cars spinning. Whether or not it this is an occurrence on just this oval remains to be seen.
KM - I think it is due to pack racing being less common with the DW12. There is, thankfully, less opportunity for silly and unnecessary incidents.
CW - A combination of a highly-skilled field, improvements on the reliability side of the DW12 chassis and a bit of luck too.
GOD - It seems like it's difficult to find the limit of performance for the DW12, but it isn't too hard to drive around at 95% of the limit of performance. If there was more disparity between the cars and more unreliability then there would be more cautions.
AR - This is the third year now running the DW12 and maybe the core of drivers who have run all those years have become comfortable and in a sense mastered the car. The addition of areo kits for 2015 could freshen up the challenge for teams and drivers to get the very best out of the car.
RT - Reliability seems a lot better and maybe drivers are trying to make progress using strategy as running behind a car into a corner seems to be more difficult now with tires 'going off' quicker.
JM - Probably a combination of luck, mastering the DW12 on the ovals and the fact we had two 500 mile races with only 21 starters and three other oval races with 22 so that's less traffic for the drivers to deal with than in several years; that doesn't explain the Indy 500, mind. You could also argue that perhaps this is one of the strongest IndyCar fields in a decade so the driving is going to be of a fairly high quality. Maybe it's all coincidence.
Tony Kanaan finally made it to the top step of the podium, pulling in a stellar performance for the final segments of the race. Is this, and recent results, a sign of a championship push for 2015?
NG - It would be great to see, but I don't think we will see a real championship push deep into the season. TK and Ganassi in particular aren't the strongest on the street and road courses and that hurts them both.
GC - If TK, or indeed Scott Dixon, are going to challenge for the championship next yer then the Ganassi team need to hit the ground running. They had a slow start to this year compared to other teams and it hurt them in the championship hunt.
KM - Hopefully for TK. The question is how will Ganassi turn up at the first race. In 2012 they got off to a slow start and it cost them, the same thing this year as well. They need to start hot.
CW - Certainly. Winning the last race of the season is always good heading into the off-season, and TK will be right up to speed come the first race of 2015.
GOD - My heart says no but my head says yes. Looking at Helio this year, he didn't set the world alight but still it was enough to get second in the championship. If Tony starts of well in 2015 then he can be a factor for the championship, but I don't think he has the raw pace on the twisty tracks which could make it hard.
AR - Dixon yes in the CGR stable, maybe TK has yet to really establish himself on the R & S tracks with Ganassi. They have ended the season strong so maybe it is something for them to carry into 2015.
RT - I think hes been more consistent at the back end of the season but it does seem more of a lottery getting he perfect set up every race weekend. Maybe with the aero packs in 2015 and being part of one of the bigger budget teams it could be an advantage.
JM - Perhaps, if CGR are strong out of the blocks next season TK (and the rest of the boys) could be in with a shout. TK's still looking pretty sharp in the car and he has probably the best coach/mentor one could have in Dario so if the car is strong he ought to be there!
GC - If TK, or indeed Scott Dixon, are going to challenge for the championship next yer then the Ganassi team need to hit the ground running. They had a slow start to this year compared to other teams and it hurt them in the championship hunt.
KM - Hopefully for TK. The question is how will Ganassi turn up at the first race. In 2012 they got off to a slow start and it cost them, the same thing this year as well. They need to start hot.
CW - Certainly. Winning the last race of the season is always good heading into the off-season, and TK will be right up to speed come the first race of 2015.
GOD - My heart says no but my head says yes. Looking at Helio this year, he didn't set the world alight but still it was enough to get second in the championship. If Tony starts of well in 2015 then he can be a factor for the championship, but I don't think he has the raw pace on the twisty tracks which could make it hard.
AR - Dixon yes in the CGR stable, maybe TK has yet to really establish himself on the R & S tracks with Ganassi. They have ended the season strong so maybe it is something for them to carry into 2015.
RT - I think hes been more consistent at the back end of the season but it does seem more of a lottery getting he perfect set up every race weekend. Maybe with the aero packs in 2015 and being part of one of the bigger budget teams it could be an advantage.
JM - Perhaps, if CGR are strong out of the blocks next season TK (and the rest of the boys) could be in with a shout. TK's still looking pretty sharp in the car and he has probably the best coach/mentor one could have in Dario so if the car is strong he ought to be there!
Your thoughts on the Aleshin crash in practice, what are your thoughts on the way the car lifted and went into the fence, also the safety of the DW12?
NG - You can't prevent every accident. The tub did its job and we were lucky things didn't turn out worse. It's always going to come down to luck in any form of racing.
GC - I think it was just a freak accident. The speeds the cars are travelling at, if anyone does spin and slide back up the track, any driver on a hot lap will simply have nowhere to go. This was the case with Aleshin and Kimball. It's unfortunate that the shape of the nose on the DW12 acts as a ramp during t-bone impacts, but the safety of the chassis must be applauded.
KM - As hard as it is to say, it was very similar to Las Vegas and of course Houston last year. Any accident is never nice to see especially one that involves a car hitting the catch fence. The is no question the DW12 is much safer than the previous car but they need to work on finding a solution to keep the cars grounded.
CW - I thought "this looks bad, almost too bad." It's remarkable how structurally good the DW12 is, there are improvements that could be made, however, not just to chassis but to fences also.
GOD - Looked frightening especially when the car took off, hit the fence and then spun around in the air. It seems that the DW12 is a safe car, but put it into a fence and anything can happen.
AR - Waking up to medical update emails isn't the best thing to see in the morning, but having seen the crash later that day I thought the tub did a great job in protecting the driver, and breaking up releasing the energy from the crash. It needed the Kimball car to hit it at the point that would launch it upwards since there is no give in tarmac... Maybe there is something Dallara could do to help keep the cars grounded? The fences on the other hand....
RT - I think the DW12 chassis has probably saved him from a lot more severe injury. At 220mph there's only so much you can prevent and I think the drivers are aware of this. If Pagenaud had spun himself onto the track when leaving the pits and ended up in a situation similar to Zanardi's accident I doubt any safety measures would help. Motor racing is a dangerous sport but thankfully safer than it was.
JM - It looked scarily like a hybrid of Alex Zanardi's accident at Lausitz and Kenny Bräck's at Texas (the way the car got up on the wall and how the fence spat it back out). I saw something RHR said on racer.com about hoping that they increase the height of the SAFER barriers so as to stop the cars getting up above them and making contact with the fence, which, given recent history in both IndyCar and NASCAR is probably a very sensible thing to do. As for the car, it seemed to hold up terrifically well despite being t-boned at 200mph and hitting a wall, then the catch fence; the reports seem to indicate that most of Mikhail's injuries were as a result of the collision with Charlie Kimball, rather than from the impact with the wall and the fence, which is fabulous and could well have saved Mikhail's life.
GC - I think it was just a freak accident. The speeds the cars are travelling at, if anyone does spin and slide back up the track, any driver on a hot lap will simply have nowhere to go. This was the case with Aleshin and Kimball. It's unfortunate that the shape of the nose on the DW12 acts as a ramp during t-bone impacts, but the safety of the chassis must be applauded.
KM - As hard as it is to say, it was very similar to Las Vegas and of course Houston last year. Any accident is never nice to see especially one that involves a car hitting the catch fence. The is no question the DW12 is much safer than the previous car but they need to work on finding a solution to keep the cars grounded.
CW - I thought "this looks bad, almost too bad." It's remarkable how structurally good the DW12 is, there are improvements that could be made, however, not just to chassis but to fences also.
GOD - Looked frightening especially when the car took off, hit the fence and then spun around in the air. It seems that the DW12 is a safe car, but put it into a fence and anything can happen.
AR - Waking up to medical update emails isn't the best thing to see in the morning, but having seen the crash later that day I thought the tub did a great job in protecting the driver, and breaking up releasing the energy from the crash. It needed the Kimball car to hit it at the point that would launch it upwards since there is no give in tarmac... Maybe there is something Dallara could do to help keep the cars grounded? The fences on the other hand....
RT - I think the DW12 chassis has probably saved him from a lot more severe injury. At 220mph there's only so much you can prevent and I think the drivers are aware of this. If Pagenaud had spun himself onto the track when leaving the pits and ended up in a situation similar to Zanardi's accident I doubt any safety measures would help. Motor racing is a dangerous sport but thankfully safer than it was.
JM - It looked scarily like a hybrid of Alex Zanardi's accident at Lausitz and Kenny Bräck's at Texas (the way the car got up on the wall and how the fence spat it back out). I saw something RHR said on racer.com about hoping that they increase the height of the SAFER barriers so as to stop the cars getting up above them and making contact with the fence, which, given recent history in both IndyCar and NASCAR is probably a very sensible thing to do. As for the car, it seemed to hold up terrifically well despite being t-boned at 200mph and hitting a wall, then the catch fence; the reports seem to indicate that most of Mikhail's injuries were as a result of the collision with Charlie Kimball, rather than from the impact with the wall and the fence, which is fabulous and could well have saved Mikhail's life.
Will Power, a deserving champion?
NG - Yes! No-one had a faultless season. The only real bonzo moment was the block in Pocono. Even the best drivers can't make an IndyCar look easy to drive, despite the ridiculous assertions of some.
GC - For me, yes. He's been so close for the past 3 or 4 years, but unfortunately in seasons past his oval performances have let him down. This year he seems to have cracked the ovals, and at Fontana he drove nearly the perfect race under so much pressure.
KM - Absolutely. I'm not his biggest fan but he has gone through so much heartbreak in 2010 , 11 and 12. He deserved a break and was phenomenal all year.
CW - Of course. He has made a lot of unforced errors this year but he has also had some phenomenal drives, and seems very versatile now, having won on all types of course
GOD - Most definitely a deserving champion. It's been great to see Power improve his performances on ovals over the last few years and that makes it deserving for him. However for a driver so gifted he lacks so much confidence in his abilities. He has a long off season to think about this win!
AR - Definitely, no one driver has stood out but he has consistently scored points on all types of tracks, despite various penalties which he needs really to cut out in coming seasons.
RT - Yes overall. There were no runaway leaders this year thankfully for the series. I think Hunter Reay will be the most disappointed sharing the most number of wins but didn't get the luck.
JM - He's been the best driver this year and his Milwaukee victory was one of the finest in years. At the same time, he could easily have won twice as many races as he did this season and he should've had the title secured with a least a race to spare, were it not for some serious errors of judgement (almost of which were unforced). The highs were very, very high for Will this year but the mistakes almost cost him the championship. He deserves a championship because he's been the best driver of the past half decade undoubtedly, but he's still making a lot of stupid mistakes.
GC - For me, yes. He's been so close for the past 3 or 4 years, but unfortunately in seasons past his oval performances have let him down. This year he seems to have cracked the ovals, and at Fontana he drove nearly the perfect race under so much pressure.
KM - Absolutely. I'm not his biggest fan but he has gone through so much heartbreak in 2010 , 11 and 12. He deserved a break and was phenomenal all year.
CW - Of course. He has made a lot of unforced errors this year but he has also had some phenomenal drives, and seems very versatile now, having won on all types of course
GOD - Most definitely a deserving champion. It's been great to see Power improve his performances on ovals over the last few years and that makes it deserving for him. However for a driver so gifted he lacks so much confidence in his abilities. He has a long off season to think about this win!
AR - Definitely, no one driver has stood out but he has consistently scored points on all types of tracks, despite various penalties which he needs really to cut out in coming seasons.
RT - Yes overall. There were no runaway leaders this year thankfully for the series. I think Hunter Reay will be the most disappointed sharing the most number of wins but didn't get the luck.
JM - He's been the best driver this year and his Milwaukee victory was one of the finest in years. At the same time, he could easily have won twice as many races as he did this season and he should've had the title secured with a least a race to spare, were it not for some serious errors of judgement (almost of which were unforced). The highs were very, very high for Will this year but the mistakes almost cost him the championship. He deserves a championship because he's been the best driver of the past half decade undoubtedly, but he's still making a lot of stupid mistakes.
Driver of the Day - WILL POWER (No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet)
"That was one of the hardest races ever. Oh my God, I was crying over the line. It just went on and on. I slowly made up position and the car wasn't great. But, man. Got to thank Verizon and Roger Penske and Tim Cindric. It's surreal, man. I can't believe it." (About the emotion of winning) "I'm so mentally exhausted now. I'm just so exhausted. My hands are like numb from holding onto the wheel so tight. Man, I want to be a lot more excited but I'm just so drained. That was just mega. I can't believe I won it."(About what happened in his life in the last 24 hours, 7 days) "The last 14 days have been the worst in my life, just mentally, just emotionally -just so bad. Not sleeping and stressing. I feel bad for my wife. Keeping her up at night, just bad. You never think it can happen until it happens. I can't believe I'm champion. I can't believe it."(About whether he thought it was over) "I didn't think it was over. Just knowing how things have gone in the past. God." (At what point tonight did you say we're doing to do this) "Actually, when I took the lead, I thought 'This is good. I believe we've got a pretty good shot here.' When they said he got a drive though I said 'Hey, this is it. We can do this. We can win it.'" (About celebrating) "It's unbelievable. That's 15 years of hard work. I started taking it seriously in 2000. That's just 15 years of hard work."
... and the thoughts of our contributors
NG - He was given a plan and executed it perfectly. Going for the lead when he didn't need to revealed the other side of Power, the one that makes him so good and despite his reputation is far more of a help than a hindrance. But for the front wing mistake by Penske he could have even won.
GC - To not crack after years of falling at the final hurdle, and to drive such a patient race where others would have been tempted to race hard from the start, showed an immense signs of maturity and patience to earn Power what has avoided him for so long.
KM - Started on the back row and finished in top 10. Kept calm and composed despite the enormous pressure on him.
AR - Not his best result, but probably his best race, careful start to keep out of trouble and gradually picked each car off as the race went through, made it all the way to the lead, picking up a point, and managed his race to the very end.
RT - Cant take it away from him, he knew where he had to finish and after the last pit stop he was struggling with a nervous car and an even more nervous driver but he held it together.
GC - To not crack after years of falling at the final hurdle, and to drive such a patient race where others would have been tempted to race hard from the start, showed an immense signs of maturity and patience to earn Power what has avoided him for so long.
KM - Started on the back row and finished in top 10. Kept calm and composed despite the enormous pressure on him.
AR - Not his best result, but probably his best race, careful start to keep out of trouble and gradually picked each car off as the race went through, made it all the way to the lead, picking up a point, and managed his race to the very end.
RT - Cant take it away from him, he knew where he had to finish and after the last pit stop he was struggling with a nervous car and an even more nervous driver but he held it together.
Rate the Race - 3.5 Stars
Not the classic that Fontana has thrown up in the past couple seasons, but still a fast frantic pace that crowned a new champion.