Photo Credit: sports.usatoday.com
40. 2014 Grand Prix of Indianapolis, Indianapolis Motor Speedway- Winner: Simon Pagenaud. No one was really sure what to make of this weekend after the Indycars returned to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course. Polesitter Sebastian Saavedra stalled on the pole and got absolutely smashed from behind, ending his day before it began. The mayor of Indianapolis was standing inside the pit wall and was injured because of debris. Also, James Hinchcliffe’s helmet was hit with flying debris, knocking him unconscious. He was later diagnosed with a concussion. Jack Hawksworth dominated much of the race, but in the end it came down to Simon Pagenaud, Ryan Hunter-Reay, and Helio Castroneves. Hunter-Reay and Castroneves both had more fuel than Pagenaud and closing in on him after combining to lead 33 of the 82 laps. Pagenaud was able to hold on and win the race after leading just 6 laps.
39. 2012 Honda Indy Toronto, Streets of Toronto- Winner: Ryan Hunter-Reay. For his 3rd consecutive victory, Ryan Hunter-Reay won on the streets of Toronto to capitalize on the momentum he had from the previous two races, and he used that hot streak to propel him to the 2012 championship.
38. 2013 Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama, Barber Motorsports Park- Winner: Ryan Hunter-Reay. Hunter-Reay started from pole and led a majority of the laps in a race that included season-opener winner James Hinchcliffe out of the race stranded on the track’s interior at the start of the race. About halfway through the race, Hinchcliffe was still there and race commentator Wall Dallenbach Jr. claimed to have ordered a pizza for him. Helio Castroneves led a solid amount of laps as well and placed 3rd. Scott Dixon placed 2nd for the 4th straight year out of 4 races at Barber.
37. 2011 Grand Prix of Long Beach, Streets of Long Beach- Winner: Mike Conway. Conway qualified high but ended up towards the back up the pack in the middle of the race. He ended up getting back up to the front, and once he took the lead, he drove away from the field for his first career victory, and first since sustaining major injuries after crashing in the Indianapolis 500 one year prior.
36. 2014 Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama, Barber Motorsports Park- Winner: Ryan Hunter-Reay. The race was shortened to a time limit due to rain, so only 69 of the scheduled 90 laps were run. Will Power started on pole and led 15 laps, but found himself off course early and came inches from hammering the wall. He recovered and ended up finishing in 5th place. Ryan Hunter-Reay won the race for the 2nd straight season. He won under caution after having a huge lead over teammate Marco Andretti, who came home in 2nd. Scott Dixon finished on the podium for the 5th year out of 5 years of action at the track, but it was the first time he did not finish in 2nd, taking 3rd.
35. 2014 Pocono Indy 500, Pocono Raceway- Winner: Juan Pablo Montoya. Tony Kanaan dominated pretty much the entire race, but when he had to make an extra pit stop towards the end, it cycled Josef Newgarden to the front after he started in last place. He too had to come in for fuel in the closing laps, and Montoya took his first victory since coming back to the Indycar Series.
34. 2013 Grand Prix of Long Beach, Streets of Long Beach- Winner: Takuma Sato. Takuma Sato claimed his 1st ever Indycar win after dominating the whole 2nd half of the race and some of the 1st half after Dario Franchitti dominated the first third of it.
33. 2013 Pocono Indy 400, Pocono Raceway- Winner: Scott Dixon. Marco Andretti dominated the first half of the race, then Tony Kanaan led some laps before he took minor damage after some minor contact, but still had to pit. Scott Dixon got to the front and stayed, as Andretti ended up pitting on the wrong strategy. Dixon won, with his teammates Charlie Kimball and Dario Franchitti finishing in 2nd and 3rd for a podium sweep.
32. 2010 Cafes do Brasil Indy 300, Homestead-Miami Speedway- Winner: Scott Dixon. After leading more than half of the race’s laps, Dario Franchitti took it easy after championship competitor Will Power crashed. Franchitti took a conservative approach to the rest of the race, knowing exactly where he needed to end up to win the championship. He was almost collected in an accident involving Milka Duno, but he ended up finishing in 8th and winning his 3rd Indycar title.
31. 2011 Honda Indy Toronto, Streets of Toronto- Winner: Dario Franchitti. In a race that featured the pace car leading the most laps, pit strategy, and a controversial take-out between championship contenders Dario Franchitti and Will Power, Franchitti survived the calamity and took home the win. Power wanted a penalty issued to Franchitti for the spin, but Franchitti got the last laugh with the win, and then eventually the championship, his 4th.
-Asher Fair
SportsPress 