My post-race feature for The Open Wheel continues with a collection of random thoughts following the 2018 INDYCAR Grand Prix at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course.

• Power dominates for first win of ’18 and third in five years of the INDYCAR Grand Prix – Will Power was due for a Verizon IndyCar Series win and got it in dominant fashion at the INDYCAR Grand Prix with the pole position and this pass after falling behind Robert Wickens on tire strategy. Power has now won this race three times in its five year existence and after his showing this weekend that dominance looks like it could continue well into the future. Power is now up to seventh in the championship  and could vault himself right back into contention with a solid run in the 500 after a rocky start to the season.
• First lap madness continues at INDYCAR Grand Prix – The trademark of the INDYCAR Grand Prix has been madness at the start and this year was no different with a pair of incidents as seen here. The high speeds of the front straight leading in to the slow 90 degree Turn 1 has always led to crazy starts and this one was another wild one as Jordan King and Simon Pagenaud made big contact in Turn 1 and Spencer Pigot went airborne into Takuma Sato a few turns later. This race may have only been around for five years but it now is one of the can’t miss starts of the season every single year.
• Newgarden aggressiveness backfires – Josef Newgarden used plenty of successful aggressive moves throughout the 2017 season to win the championship but it was over aggression that cost him with this incident on Saturday. Newgarden was working towards a podium finish and just pushed a little too hard trying to get around Sebastien Bourdais as he fought for a podium finish. It’s not as if Newgarden didn’t make mistakes last year, his crash at Texas comes to mind, but it will be interesting to see if this incident makes him less prone to pull the trigger on a risky move or two later in the year.
• Herta puts IMS troubles behind him with Lights weekend sweep – It was a wild weekend in Indy Lights as championship winner Patricio O’Ward, winner of three of the season’s first four races, earned the pole for each of the two races on the IMS road course before self-inflicted errors cost him in each race. Colton Herta was happy to pounce as he won each race over the weekend in spectacular fashion. Herta was held up by O’Ward’s off in Turn 1 of Race 1 and had to work his way through the field with race craft we haven’t always seen from the teenager. Herta used pressure and guile to force a mistake by O’Ward and Race 2 and then took off for an easy victory once he earned the lead. It was quite the turnaround for Herta at IMS after finishing twelfth, tenth, and thirteenth in the three races there last year. O’Ward’s points lead is now down to just one point over Herta and six points over Urrutia heading into the Freedom 100.

My post-race feature for The Open Wheel continues with a collection of random thoughts following the 2018 Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama at Barber Motorsports Park.

• Newgarden dominates in all conditions – For the second race weekend in a row, we saw a dominant performance all weekend by the eventual race winner as Josef Newgarden responded to Alexander Rossi’s performance at Long Beach with an impressive weekend of his own. Newgarden was fastest in Friday practice, topped all three of his qualifying sessions to win the pole, and dominated the race for his second victory of the season and third win in four years at Barber Motorsports Park. Josef did well to maintain his lead in treacherous conditions on Sunday before driving off to a big lead in the dry part of Monday’s continuation of the race. By the time the rain fell on Monday, Newgarden needed only to stay on the track to grab an important victory for his championship hopes. Newgarden now leads the championship by 13 points as the series heads to Indianapolis.
• Pagenaud & Chaves exchange words after the race – Matt Weaver posted this incredible exchange between Simon Pagenaud and Gabby Chaves after the race on Monday. Pagenaud went to Chaves’ pit stand after the race as he took issue with Chaves not letting him by on track when Pagenaud was on the lead lap and Chaves was a lap down. For two drivers who are usually so calm and likeable, their profane altercation on pit road is very shocking. (WARNING: Link is NSFW)
• Pigot & ZCD combine for bizarre contact – Spencer Pigot and Zachary Claman De Melo combined for one of the most bizarre incidents you’ll ever see with this collision on Monday. Claman De Melo put on a show in the early part of the continuation of the race on Monday, and this was no doubt the highlight as he and Pigot came together for about five seconds before each continued on with the race. It’s an incredible highlight and unbelievable it didn’t end at least one of the drivers’ days.
• O’Ward sweeps Lights race to seize control of championship – Patricio O’Ward won both Indy Lights races at Barber Motorsports Park and now has the championship lead after four rounds. O’Ward passed his teammate Colton Herta for the lead in Race 1 after missing out on the pole and then put on a spectacular drive from pole in the wet in Race 2 on Sunday. Patricio arguably should have four wins from four races after going off course from the lead in St. Pete Race 2 and settling for P7. He has dominated the Indy Lights season thus far. O’Ward has a 16 point lead in the championship, 27 points over Herta, and is certainly the championship favorite after the first two race weekends.

My post-race feature for The Open Wheel continues with a collection of random thoughts following the 2018 Verizon IndyCar Series Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach

• Rossi dominates the weekend and race to take championship lead – Alexander Rossi delivered a massive statement of intent this weekend with an absolutely dominant performance at the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach. Rossi was fastest in three of the four practice sessions, won the pole, and led 71 of the 85 laps en route to victory. Rossi was so close to winning at St. Pete, had far and away the best car and best drive at Phoenix, and now dominated the second biggest race on the calendar. He has to be the championship favorite through three races of the season.
• Bourdais puts on a show – He won’t be happy with his P13 finish, but a solid argument could be made for Sebastien Bourdais as the driver of the race at Long Beach. Bourdais completed an iconic pass on three cars in one turn with this incredible move. Bourdais was penalized for crossing the pit road line as part of the pass but after giving back a position to Dixon he immediately attacked him again with another breathtaking pass. He also delivered some incredible quotes after the race: “Race Control could have waited a couple seconds before closing the pits, but they didn’t and we went to the back where we had to race idiots. I was racing (Charlie) Kimball side-by-side and he gives me no room, and he bent both of my toe links on the right side. It was pretty much game over from there. I made a mistake because of it trying to pass him again later into Turn 9. The car wouldn’t turn anymore. Then, in the next corner, Jordan King felt like a hero and took us out. After that, I had to deal with another idiot, Matheus Leist, who tried to crash both of us a couple of times.”
• Veach earns Top 5 in just his fifth race – Zach Veach delivered a solid, mistake-free race to earn his first Top 5 in the Verizon IndyCar Series in a race where so many were making mistakes. The rookie showed some mettle and it was nice to see him get a solid result so early in the season. Veach spoke afterwards and how much faster he was at Barber Motorsports Park in testing this offseason compared to when he was thrown into a car at Ed Carpenter Racing as a substitute last season. He has a nice chance to back up this result at a rare track where he has experience at this level this weekend.
• Carlin shows improvement over the weekend – After dismal results in the first two weekends of the season, Verizon IndyCar Series newcomers Carlin showed progress at Long Beach. Max Chilton qualified 15th and Charlie Kimball earned the team’s first Top 10 in the series with a P10 finish. It’s still not what the team is looking for, but its considerably better than the first two weekends and the team is happy to see the improvement. Here’s what Kimball had to say afterwards: “We got a little lucky with yellows, but we’ll take some luck with a new team building our foundation in INDYCAR. A lot of credit to the guys though – they’ve worked so hard since October to make this happen. A top-10 finish is a start and hopefully moving forward we can qualify better so we don’t have to work so hard to get back into the top 10 moving forward.”

My post-race feature for The Open Wheel continues with a collection of random thoughts following the 2018 Verizon IndyCar Series Desert Diamond West Valley Casino Phoenix Grand Prix

• Newgarden opportunistic to grab win and early championship lead – Josef Newgarden admitted after the race HE didn’t necessarily deserve the win, but his victory at Phoenix showed the mettle of a champion as he worked his way through the field to give himself a chance at the end. He and his team’s call to pit for tires from the lead was a bold strategy but he made it work with this excellent pass on Robert Wickens. Now the defending series champion already has the championship lead two races into the season without showing anything close to his dominant form from the close of last year. That could be a dangerous sign for the rest of the field.
• Wickens stars in oval debut – Robert Wickens arguably should have two legitimate wins in his first two Verizon IndyCar Series races. That’s beyond incredible. Perhaps Wickens’ dominant performance at St. Pete wasn’t an absolute surprise due to a wacky qualifying session and his undoubted talent, but what he did at ISM Raceway over the weekend was spectacular. To qualify P6, run at the front all night long, pass his teammate James Hinchcliffe for the lead, and nearly hold off Newgarden for victory in his short oval debut is a big showing for Wickens and he now has the attention of the entire paddock. It’s not just that he’s fast, but his savvy moves to force Newgarden to pass him on the outside in the final laps were the mark of an oval track veteran that Wickens absolutely is not. I can’t wait to see how his season develops as the ultra-quick Canadian gets even more comfortable in the Verizon IndyCar Series.
• Rossi delivers electric performance – Alexander Rossi single-handedly changed the narrative of what is and isn’t possible under the current configuration at ISM Raceway with an incredible display in the second half of the race on Saturday night. He almost drove through the entire field twice as he both un-lapped himself and reworked himself into position to contend before the last restart. The stats are incredible. Rossi passed 53 cars on the night. Bourdais was second on that list with just 24 passes. Almost half the field made only single digit passes. Rossi showed it is very possible to pass at Phoenix and I hope that’s factored into the decision on whether or not the series will return to ISM Raceway.
• Carlin struggles for pace again – The Carlin duo of Max Chilton and Charlie Kimball has been at or near the bottom of the charts a lot so far this season and there’s no hiding that the Verizon IndyCar Series’ newest team is struggling at the moment. The qualifying efforts of the team so far through two races are P20, P21, P21, and P22. Each driver has finished two or three laps down in each race this season. That’s not at all what you’d expect from a team with the pedigree of Carlin even on their debut at this level. I fully expect them to get better but it’s surprising to see this performance from Carlin and two very experienced drivers through two races.

My post-race feature for The Open Wheel continues with a collection of random thoughts following the first INDYCAR weekend of 2018 on the Streets of St. Petersburg.

• Bourdais Repeats at St. Pete in Incredible Fashion – What an incredible story it is that Sebastien Bourdais and Dale Coyne Racing won the Verizon IndyCar Series opener for the second straight year. It’s an amazing storyline for so many reasons. Obviously, it’s incredible that Bourdais can be racing at such a highly competitive level so soon after his horrific crash in qualifying for the Indianapolis 500 Mile Race last year. But we know Bourdais is a special talent capable of moments of magic. However, what he and his small Dale Coyne Racing team have done lately is beyond incredible. This win may have taken some good fortune, but they’ve shown legitimate speed for over a full season now and know how to take advantage of it. And how excited must Jimmy Vasser and James Sullivan be about all of this? They get a win in their first race back in INDYCAR thanks to their partnership with Dale Coyne Racing for the Bourdais car. If this team can carry the momentum and speed they showed with Bourdais in the first half of last season, they can certainly remain in the hunt for the championship.
• Wickens’ Incredible Weekend Tarnished by “Racing Incident” – Robert Wickens must have thought he had the debut of his dreams solidified before a late caution put Alexander Rossi and the rest of the field back within his grasp for what turned out to be two late restarts. Wickens backed up his shock pole with a dominant performance in the race and he looked to be well on his way to victory before Rene Binder’s late incident. You can’t blame either Rossi or Wickens for what happened on the restart with two laps ago, this was the definition of a “racing incident”. Rossi saw a gap for the win and Wickens kept it tight to prevent Rossi from easily pulling the move off. It’s just one of those things. You have to feel for the Canadian rookie after his spectacular debut. His performance announced his presence to the INDYCAR community, but he has little to show for it now.
• Team Penske Shockingly Behind at St. Pete – Team Penske had won 8 of the prevoius 11 races on the Streets of St. Petersburg before last year’s race and they were considered favorites again heading into this weekend. However, they didn’t show their usual speed at any point throughout the weekend. None of their cars topped a practice session. Defending series champion Josef Newgarden failed to make it out of Round 1 Group 1 qualifying in conditions that were as close to optimal as we saw in qualifying. Only Will Power made the Firestone Fast Six, but he was beat out for the pole by a rookie, and then spun while trying to pass Wickens in the opening turns of the race. He never recovered and had to settle for P10. Newgarden finished the race respectably in P7, but never looked to be a factor. Simon Pagenaud had as quiet of a weekend as you’ll ever see from him in qualifying P11 and finishing P13. While it’s far too early to make a judgement on the team, it was shocking to see Team Penske look off the pace in the opening weekend.
• Urrutia Shows Championship Mettle in Lights Opening Weekend – Belardi Auto Racing veteran Santi Urrutia was one of the championship favorites coming into the opening weekend of the Indy Lights season and put himself in great position with a win and a second place finish. But much like Bourdais’ victory at St. Pete, the story of Urrutia’s weekend wasn’t just about pure speed, but running at the front and making it to the finish. Urrutia earned those results after poor qualifying relative to his lofty standards (P4 and P6), but thanks to pole sitter Telitz missing Race 1 and incidents by Herta and O’Ward in Race 2, Urrutia’s race craft delivered a strong weekend and an early championship lead. The Uruguayan should arguably be in the Verizon IndyCar Series already, especially compared to others making the jump this year, but he needs the financial support of the Lights title and Mazda scholarship to lock that in and he couldn’t have asked for a bigger weekend.

My post-race feature for The Open Wheel continues with a collection of random thoughts following the final Verizon IndyCar Series race weekend of the season at Sonoma Raceway for the GoPro Grand Prix of Sonoma.

• Newgarden Delivers Deserved Championship – Josef Newgarden won the Verizon IndyCar Series championship in his first year with Team Penske. That’s incredible. His intelligence to avoid pushing too hard and making a mistake when Pagenaud exited the pits in front of him showed the maturity of a champion and this could be the first of many for the American star. He had to have wanted to win the championship in style with a win but he listened to his team and still pushed Pagenaud, but brought the car home in P2 for the title. But it wasn’t just maturity that won him the championship. It was incredible pace (Sonoma pole) and determination (Mid-Ohio and Gateway passes for the win) when he needed it most showing incredible courage on a team full of established veterans. Newgarden checks every box you can ask for as a Verizon IndyCar Series superstar and he’s now in position to dominate the series for a long time.
• Pagenaud Brilliant To Win Two Straight At Sonoma – Simon Pagenaud used a four-stop strategy and blistering pace to win the GoPro Grand Prix of Sonoma for the second straight year. He did all he could to put himself in position to win the title but unfortunately for him, Newgarden managed to stay right behind him to seal the championship. However, Pagenaud closed his season with his best and most determined effort of the season and that’s a great sign for him looking forward to next year.
• Rahal Finishes “Best Of The Rest” – Graham Rahal’s P6 finish at Sonoma allowed him to move up to sixth in the final Verizon IndyCar Series championship standings. He’s the first driver in the standings who doesn’t race for Team Penske or Chip Ganassi Racing Teams. That’s a deserved honor for both Graham and his Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing team. What they’ve been able to achieve year-in, year-out as a one car team has been incredible. Of course, that will change next year with the addition of a second car for Takuma Sato and it will be interesting to see how that affects the team’s dynamics.
• For Better Or Worse, Aero Kit Era Is Over – There has been a of negative feedback over the initial look of the DW12, the subsequent aero kits and their expense, true effectiveness, etc. but they have delivered plenty of exciting racing over the years. That all changes next year in 2018 as the Verizon IndyCar Series returns to a universal aero kit with major design changes. While plenty of optimism surrounds these incoming changes, myself included, it’s hard to ignore the quality of racing and safety the now old aero kits provided us in recent years.

My post-race feature for The Open Wheel continues with a collection of random thoughts following the INDYCAR weekend at Watkins Glen International for the INDYCAR Grand Prix at The Glen.

• Rossi Delivers Dominant Weekend Fresh Off Contract Extension – Alexander Rossi had himself a week! His multi-year extension with Andretti Autosport and sponsor NAPA was announced on Friday. He won his first Verizon IndyCar Series pole on Saturday. He led 32 of 60 laps at Watkins Glen on Sunday for his second Verizon IndyCar Series victory and first since his incredible win in the 100th Running of the Indianapolis 500 Mile Race. Rossi has been on a hot streak lately and finally got the victory he deserved but it didn’t come without adversity. Rossi had to pit off sequence in the middle portion of the race after building a big lead due to a malfunctioning fuel probe not getting all the necessary fuel into the car on an earlier stop. However, thanks to a big gap and a well-timed caution Rossi retook the lead and never looked back even after needing to out duel Watkins Glen-master Scott Dixon on a late restart.
• Newgarden Error Tightens Championship Fight – Josef Newgarden didn’t have a great weekend at Watkins Glen but he had a solid enough race going to keep most of his championship lead before an incident on pit road changed the championship picture. Newgarden leaves Watkins Glen with just a 3 point lead over Dixon, 22 over Castroneves, and 34 over Pagenaud. With double points on offer at Sonoma, the title is truly up for grabs at the series finale.
• Harvey Solid In Road Course Debut – Jack Harvey made his road/street course debut in the Verizon IndyCar Series this weekend and did a respectable job in the Schmidt Peterson Motorsports No. 7. Not only did he a bring an exciting new pink livery to the series (cheers to not being blue and white), but he delivered a solid performance all weekend long and gave himself plenty to build upon heading into the series finale at Sonoma. Harvey didn’t finish last in any practice session, out qualified the far more experienced Marco Andretti and JR Hildebrand in his qualifying group, and drove a nice race to finish in P14 from a P18 starting spot.
• Kaiser Seals Deserved Lights Title – Kyle Kaiser won the Indy Lights championship at Watkins Glen simply by starting the race after an impressively consistent 2017 season. The 21 year old American finished on the podium in 8 of 16 races with 3 wins for the season. The two races at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course were his only non-Top 10’s of the season and he finished all but one lap for the season. That incredible consistency won him the championship and he deserves the Verizon IndyCar Series opportunity he’s earned for 2018.
• Franzoni Wins Pro Mazda Title For Lights Scholarship – Victor Franzoni won both Pro Mazda races at Watkins Glen over the weekend to win the championship in Pro Mazda. Franzoni will move up to Indy Lights next year following as good of a season as can possibly be expected. The 21 year old Brazilian won 7 of the 12 Pro Mazda races in 2017 and finished second in the other 5. That’s incredible! As Juncos Racing’s champion Indy Lights driver Kaiser makes the step up to the Verizon IndyCar Series next year, the team could do much worse than to bring Franzoni into that same seat in Lights next year and see what he can do after an astounding year in Pro Mazda. Runner-up Anthony Martin delivered what would have likely been a championship-worthy effort in any other year and should be in play for a ride in Indy Lights next year.

My post-race feature for The Open Wheel continues with a collection of random thoughts following the INDYCAR weekend at Gateway Motorsports Park for the Bommarito Automotive Group 500.

• Newgarden Delivers Another Iconic Moment In Championship Fight – Josef Newgarden has taken control of this championship race with two unbelievably skillful passes on his Team Penske teammates at Mid-Ohio and Gateway. If he goes on to win the title, those two moments will live on as part of his legacy forever. He’s showing a ruthless streak not many expected in his first year at Team Penske and it’s taken him to the cusp of his first championship. However…
• Pagenaud/Newgarden Teammate Dynamic Has Changed – Newgarden’s move at Gateway may come at a price as his teammate Simon Pagenaud was livid with Newgarden after the race. Here’s what Pagenaud said to the media after the race: “I think if it wasn’t me, he would be in the fence with somebody else. That’s what I’ve got to say.” Shortly after that, Simon was asked do you lose a little bit of the trust factor racing with Josef? “Absolutely,” said Pagenaud. “And respect, too. He doesn’t have respect for me.” There are two races left and the Team Penske cars are very even. Pagenaud is a fair driver and I don’t think he’d intentionally take out any driver, especially a teammate. However, I expect him to make life as difficult as possible for Newgarden over the remainder of the season and I doubt he’ll give him an inch if they end up near each other on track. With all of their drivers alive and desperate for a championship, the final two weekends will be interesting as the gloves come off at Team Penske.
• Nice To See Daly Earn A Great Result – Conor Daly’s P5 finish at Gateway was his best result of the season and just his third Top 10 of the year. He tested well at Gateway twice this year and was really looking forward to his event so it was great to see him pull through with a legitimate Top 5 run. He was fast all weekend and did well to work his way through the field on multiple occasions. The Foyt team has struggled with new drivers and a switch to Chevrolet this year and there are plenty of rumors that they might replace their driver lineup next year. It was definitely good for Conor to show what he can do when he has a fast car.
• What’s Going On At Ganassi? – One week after Max Chilton was forced to retire his car against his will mid-race at Pocono, Tony Kanaan was seemingly forced into the same situation while a couple laps down at Gateway. While neither is expected back with the team next year, you’d think the team would still have plenty to learn and it’s absolutely not in the Ganassi nature to give up the fight. Something strange is happening with that happening in back-to-back weeks. Chip Ganassi tweeted earlier today “Spoke to @maxchilton and @TonyKanaan. The only time we pull cars off the track is when we have no chance at a better finishing position.” But that’s not entirely true as each could have moved up a few spots in the event of a late caution and/or retirement. It’s not all bad at Ganassi, Scott Dixon’s P2 result was an absolute steal considering how strong the Team Penske cars were, but this team is going to look a lot different next year and it’s hard to tell where they’re heading at the moment.
• Kaiser Does What’s Needed To Effectively Seal Title – Santi Urrutia overcoming Juan Piedrahita for the win was the highlight of a wild Indy Lights race at Gateway but the biggest news of the weekend was Kyle Kaiser’s P4 finish meaning he only needs to start the race at Watkins Glen to win the championship. Kaiser has earned this championship with ruthless consistency I think he has punching above its weight. Three wins and eight podiums is an impressive year and it will be interesting to see how he fares in the Verizon IndyCar Series next year. Who he drives for will be an even bigger story. He hasn’t been mentioned in many rumors as a full-time option for current teams but Juncos Racing may take him up to the big show themselves. They have the equipment to do so after a two-car effort at Indianapolis this year. That storyline will make an already wild silly-season even more exciting to follow.

My post-race feature for The Open Wheel continues with a collection of random thoughts following the INDYCAR weekend at Pocono Raceway for the ABC Supply 500.

• Power Fights Off Adversity For Big Win – Will Power’s win on Sunday took some serious patience and fight. He went a lap down early to replace his front wing assembly, had his rear wing assembly replaced after he was back on the lead lap, and used an excellent maneuver between Turns 2 and 3 on the final laps to hold off a hard-charging Josef Newgarden. The Australian has closed the championship gap to just 42 points with three races to go and has as good of a chance as anyone to finish strong and win the championship.
• Rossi Impressive All Weekend Long – Alexander Rossi already has the biggest win of his career in the 100th Running of the Indianapolis 500 Mile Race, but this weekend at Pocono may have been his best race weekend of his Verizon IndyCar Series career at Pocono. He was fast in each practice session, qualified P6 (with the second fastest lap of the day), gave teammate Takuma Sato advice leading him to winning the pole, and drove at the front all day to grab a podium finish in P3. It’s easy to see why the young American is wanted by nearly everyone in the paddock if he becomes available should Andretti Autosport switch to Chevrolet for 2018. He’s been consistently fast all year long on every style of circuit and his race craft has truly gone up a level this season. He’s surely disappointed not to come away with the win but for me he was the driver of the weekend.
• Championship Race Stays Tight – The Top 5 in the Verizon IndyCar Series championship standings are separated by just 42 points with three races to go. That’s incredible! With double-points on the line at Sonoma the championship race is wide open. Newgarden, Dixon, Castroneves, Pagenaud, and Power are all capable of winning out the rest of the season and it’s almost impossible to pick a favorite for the championship. It’s a tremendous time to be an INDYCAR fan and we should all appreciate it because this isn’t going to happen every year.
• INDYCAR Safety Continues To Impress – There were multiple “big” high-speed incidents at Pocono this weekend and it’s incredible that all of the drivers walked away effectively unscathed. Hunter-Reay’s qualifying crash was incredibly violent and though he spent some time in the hospital, he was released that night, and factored for the win of a 500 mile race the next day. Hunter-Reay’s a tough guy and was clearly fighting through a lot of pain on Sunday but the fact that he was able to race in the first place is incredible. With many safety improvements planned for the new aero kit for 2018, it’s clear INDYCAR has done a great job with its priorities in safety.

My post-race feature for The Open Wheel continues with a collection of random thoughts following the INDYCAR weekend at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course for the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio.

• Newgarden Wins On His Own To Take Championship Lead – Josef Newgarden already had two Verizon IndyCar Series wins in 2017 entering Mid-Ohio, but each came largely as a result of strategy and good fortune. However, Newgarden used a brilliant pass on teammate Will Power to go on to dominate a race from start-to-finish for the first time in 2017 and now leads the championship because of it. He’s won the last two races in the series and has avoided the issues that have plagued most drivers in their first year with a new team. He’s now finished in the Top 4 in five of the last seven races and is absolutely going to be in the championship fight until the end.
• Rahal Continues Second Half Surge – Graham Rahal was brilliant all weekend long at Mid-Ohio. He was in the Top 10 in every practice session and posted the fastest time in qualifying (unfortunately for him in Round 2). He was strong throughout the race and earned a deserved podium finish in P3. He’s just 58 points back of Newgarden for the championship lead and he’s been as fast as anyone in the second part of this season. Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing continues to amaze with their speed and Rahal’s race craft every single week.
• Rare Mid-Ohio Weekend Where Dixon Struggles – Scott Dixon has won five times at Mid-Ohio and is typically near the top of every session at the circuit so it was surprising to see him fail to lead a session and struggle for race pace. It cost him the championship lead and he’s now finished between P8-P10 in four of the last five races (though the “other” was a win). Granted, a P6 qualifying performance and a P9 finish isn’t awful but that’s not what you expect from Dixon at arguably his best track. His crash in the Indianapolis 500 Mile Race is still his only non-Top 10 of the season so the consistency has been there but Dixon hasn’t been at the top of the order as much as he’d like lately. “It obviously wasn’t the way we wanted the race to go today for the NTT Data car. I really wasn’t 100 percent happy after we tested here last week and in qualifying. I don’t think we ever had the balance right where we wanted it. It felt like something broke on the car and we made some major front wing adjustments in the race.”
• Kaiser Maintains Sizable Lights Lead Despite Awful Weekend – Kyle Kaiser had seemingly stamped his authority on the Indy Lights title fight with a dominant weekend in Toronto but he finished P12 in each of the two races at Mid-Ohio. However, despite those two dismal finishes, Kaiser’s championship lead only shrunk from 51 points to 42 due to the struggles of those immediately behind him in the title fight. Matheus Leist struggled for speed all weekend and Colton Herta spun from the lead on Sunday so each missed out on opportunities to further close the gap on Kaiser. However, Santi Urrutia put himself right back in the mix with a win on Saturday and a P2 finish on Sunday. He’s now tied for second in the championship race with Herta with two races to go at Gateway and Watkins Glen. Leist is now 48 points back and will be a considerable favorite to win and likely dominate at Gateway. However, drivers can only earn a maximum of 33 points per race (including a bonus point for pole, most laps led, and fastest race lap) while last place in the final races should earn 6 points at Gateway (15 cars with Chad Boat) and 7 points at Watkins Glen (back to 14 full-time cars) so the opportunity to significantly cut into Kaiser’s lead is very limited.  If Kaiser can simply stay out of trouble, this championship race should be over.