SPEEDREADS
T E X A S M O T O R S P E E D WAY
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SPEEDREADS AUGUST 29, 2016
Worth The Wait
Rahal comes from behind to win closest race in TMS history PAGE 2
Special guest
Fallen police officer’s father takes part in “Back The Blue” Night PAGE 4
a Record And redemption
Hinchcliffe sets mark, while winner Rahal finds redemption PAGE 5
Graham Rahal celebrates his Firestone 600 victory along with Texas Motor Speedway President Eddie Gossage.
leader stays at the Top
Pagenaud remains in points lead heading into last two races of season PAGE 6 Te x a s M o t o r S p e e d w a y | A u g u s t 2 9 , 2 0 1 6 | F i r e s t o n e 6 0 0
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SPEEDREADS
Rahal comes from beHind to edge hinchcliffe in closest race in texas motor speedway history
LEAD LAP
TOP NEWS FROM TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY
It took 76 days to finally complete the Firestone 600 Verizon IndyCar Series at Texas Motor Speedway, but it sure was well worth the wait. After an initial postponement and then a suspension of the race the following day as a result of wet conditions during the original June weekend, the Verizon IndyCar Series returned to Texas Motor Speedway on Saturday night and put on a spectacular show that will be remembered as one of the alltime classics in series history. Graham Rahal (No. 15 Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda) made a scintillating last-lap pass of James Hinchliffe (No. 5 Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports Honda) in the final turn to win the Firestone 600 by
a miniscule .0080 of a second, the closest margin of victory in any major series at Texas Motor Speedway and fifth closest in Indy-car history. It wasn’t only the finish that made this race an instant classic, but the final laps following the fourth caution of the race on Lap 239 of 248 showcased incredible and daring racing by some of the most prominent names in the sport. Rahal, Hinchcliffe, Helio Castroneves (No. 3 AAA Insurance Team Penske Chevrolet), Tony Kanaan (No. 10 NTT Data Chevrolet) and Simon Pagenaud (No. 22 Hewlett Packard Enterprise Chevrolet) all were in the mix for the win with the laps winding down. The group routinely went three wide and even four wide at times to find a gap that would give them the lead. Hinchcliffe did not surrender the lead during that stretch until Rahal got a run on the inside out of Turn
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the three national series that compete at Texas Motor Speedway is .028 of a second when Elliott Sadler held off Kasey Kahne in the 2004 Samung/RadioShack 500 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race. “Oh, that was so much fun,” Kanaan said. “I’ve got to thank the fans that came back. That was some old school Texas right there. It’s always a pleasure to race like that. I feel bad for the people that didn’t come back tonight from the first race to watch because it really was a hell of a show.” This is what 0.0080 of a second looks like as Graham Rahal edged James Hinchcliffe for the win in the Firestone 600.
4 and was able to make the pass and barely hold off a final push by Hinchcliffe. “That was a great show,” Rahal said. “We appreciate all the fans that came out tonight. I hope you guys all go home and talk about how great INDYCAR racing is because that’s as good of a show as you’re going to get.”
The Firestone 600 was the resumption of the race that was postponed Saturday, June 11, due to weather and rescheduled for the following day. A total of 71 of the scheduled 248 laps were run June 12 before the race was suspended due to inclement weather. The race resumed on Lap 72 with Hinchcliffe leading the field to the green to restart the race.
“It was a great race,” Hinchcliffe said. “We haven’t had a late-finish, three-wide battle here in Texas since 2011. It’s a lot of fun racing up there with those guys and I think we put on a much better show for the fans than we would have if we were leading by half a straight. We’d have liked it better, but we’re here to put on a good show.” The Firestone 600 was the fourth Verizon IndyCar Series race in Texas Motor Speedway history that was decided by .0188 of a second or less. The previous track record for margin of victory was .0096 of a second at the 2002 Chevy 500 when Sam Hornish Jr. nipped Castroneves. The two others were Jeff Ward edging Al Unser Jr. by .0111 of a second in the 2002 Boomtown 500k and Hornish Jr. holding off Scott Sharp in the 2001 Chevy 500k. It also is the sixth Verizon IndyCar Series race at Texas Motor Speedway decided by .05 or less. Comparably, the closest NASCAR race among
Rahal notched his first win at Texas and his fourth career victory at the Firestone 600.
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SPLASH ’N GO
NOTES FROM TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY
“back the blue” night’s special guest field showing law enforcement support by donning hats of various local and national agencies and departments; and enjoyed the race from the pit boxes of Rahal and Rossi as well as suite access. Pearce and Barrientos also asked Zamarripa to join them on stage when they officially gave the command for the drivers to start their engines in their Grand Marshal role.
Enrique Zamarripa (front, center) along with Fort Worth police officer Matt Pearce (front, left) and Dallas police officer Jorge Barrientos (front, right) pose with Verizon IndyCar Series drivers prior to the start of the Firestone 600. Texas Motor Speedway’s “Back The Blue Night” at Saturday’s Firestone 600 appealed to a special guest that speedway officials were honored to have visit for the Verizon IndyCar Series race. Enrique Zamarripa, came as a fan to support law enforcement, but when speedway officials were made aware of his presence they provided him with a VIP experience for the race. Zamarripa’s 32-year-old son, Patrick, was one of five officers killed in the July 7 sniper ambush in downtown Dallas. Zamarripa was united with Dallas Police Department officer Jorge Barrientos and Fort Worth PD officer Matt Pearce, who were serving as co-Grand Marshals of the race for their heroism, and he took in the race experience with them. The group enjoyed special meet-and-greet visits with Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing driver Graham Rahal and reigning Indianapolis 500 champion Alexander Rossi; took part in the photo with the entire Verizon IndyCar Series driver
Pearce, a 36-year-old who has been with the Fort Worth Police Department since 2009, was shot multiple times March 15 after a police chase for a wanted man and his son ended in a wooded area in far west Fort Worth. He was shot multiple times, including in the cheek, arm, chest and leg, and his injuries included a bruised heart and fractured femur. It was considered a miracle he survived the shooting and he spent two months in the hospital before being released in May.
Barrientos, a four-year member of the Dallas Police Department, was part of the Fox Trot Unit that was handling traffic at the peaceful protest march held downtown July 7 when the ambush began. The 28-year-old was shot in the left hand and had shrapnel in his chest, but persevered and began providing help to the fallen officers. Ultimately, three of the five officers that were killed came from his unit, including his friend Patrick Zamarripa. Zamarripa was a six-year Dallas Police Department veteran who previously had served eight years in active duty with the U.S. Navy and another five years in the reserves. He was a Petty Officer 2nd Class and Master at Arms in the U.S. and Iraq, where he survived three tours of duty. He was honored with numerous awards and commendations for his military service, including the Iraq Campaign Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal and the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal.
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hinchcliffe sets track record for laps led in firestone 600 Ironically, Hinchcliffe eclipsed the track record that also was held by a driver that did not ultimately win the race. Target Chip Ganassi’s Dan Wheldon led 171 of the 200 laps in the 2006 Bombardier Learjet 500k, but issues on his final pit stop cost him the win and dropped him to a third-place finish. Helio Castroneves cashed in and collected the second of his four career wins at Texas Motor Speedway.
Schmidt Peterson Motorsports driver James Hinchcliffe led a race-high 188 of the 248 laps, but had to settle for a runner-up finish to Graham Rahal in Saturday night’s Firestone 600 Verizon IndyCar Series race at Texas Motor Speedway.
“It was tough,” said Hinchcliffe, who had led just eight laps in his five previous starts at Texas Motor Speedway. “We kept a lot of guys at bay. Like I said, we really built the car for long runs and on those restarts we kept them at bay a couple times but ultimately, Graham (Rahal) and TK (Tony Kanaan) stopped for tires and I think that was kind of the difference maker. It’s a tough call, but huge credit to the Arrow Electronics boys because the car really was a rocket and congrats to Graham.”
The number of laps led, however, gave Hinchcliffe a spot in the Texas Motor Speedway record books for the most ever in a single Verizon IndyCar Series race at the venue.
The most laps led by a Verizon IndyCar Series race winner at Texas Motor Speedway is 159 by Sam Hornish Jr. when he won the Bombardier Learjet 550k in 2007.
SWEET REDEMPTION FOR RAHAL Saturday night’s Firestone 600 victory was redemption for Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing driver Graham Rahal at Texas Motor Speedway. Rahal was in position to win the 2012 Firestone 550, owning a comfortable lead over Justin Wilson in the closing laps. Rahal, however, brushed the wall coming out of Turn 4 during that stretch that allowed Wilson to make the pass, take the lead for the final lap and go on to his first career oval victory. In the midst of Rahal battling for the win Saturday night in the Firestone 600, he was thinking of his fellow competitor and friend that was killed in last year’s Verizon IndyCar Series race at Pocono. “I was thinking about Justin because he and I had a great battle here a few years ago and he got me at the end,” said Rahal, who led 27 laps in that 2012 race and finished second. “I kept thinking about him the last few laps. I definitely miss that guy. He was a great human being and a hell of a race car driver.” Te x a s M o t o r S p e e d w a y | A u g u s t 2 9 , 2 0 1 6 | F i r e s t o n e 6 0 0
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Pagenaud extends championship lead this weekend and Sonoma Raceway on Sept. 18. Power had drastically cut into Pagenaud’s lead in the previous six races leading into the Firestone 600 by virtue of four wins and a pair of runner-up finishes in those starts.
Simon Pagenaud was able to slow the momentum of Will Power in Saturday night’s Firestone 600 at Texas Motor Speedway and finally extend his lead in the Verizon IndyCar Series championship over his Penske teammate. Pagenaud finished fourth (32 points) while Power finished eighth (24) to pad his championship lead to 28 (529-501) with races remaining at Watkins Glen
Pagenaud was in the mix for the race victory in the final laps of the Firestone 600, but opted to reduce his risk of going for his first career oval win and ultimately thinking about the larger championship picture. “Wow. That was exciting. I don’t think I have any breath left,” Pagenaud said afterward. “My spotter said, ‘four-wide’, and I’m like ‘Uh oh, that’s no good’. And then (Graham) Rahal touched me and I touched (James) Hinchcliffe, so I was actually loose going into the
corner and had to back out of it. It’s unfortunate. I really wanted to get that first oval win. But, I think no matter what, that was a great performance.” With two races left, Power still believes there is time to catch Pagenaud especially with his previous success at Watkins Glen and Sonoma. “Obviously there are still plenty of points on the table,” Power said. “Simon (Pagenaud) did a good job to get up there and get his lap back and get tires to make it up there. But that was an intense race there at the end. I kind of just stayed out of it. … We are still up there in points and Watkins Glen is right around the corner for us. We’ll look ahead to next week.”
CLOSEST MARGIN OF VICTORY INDYCAR HISTORY (1946-CURRENT) Seconds 0.0024 0.0033 0.0051 0.0077 0.0080 0.0096
Track Chicagoland Chicagoland Kansas Chicagoland TEXAS TEXAS
Date 9.8.2002 9.7.2008 7.4.2004 8.29.2009 8.27.2016 9.15.2002
Sanction IRL IRL IRL IRL IC IRL
I think tonight we had a great show. Did you guys enjoy it? I did. Wow. That was exciting. I don’t think I have any breath left. - Verizon IndyCar Series points leader Simon Pagenaud following the Firestone 600.
Winner Sam Hornish Jr. Helio Castroneves Buddy Rice Ryan Briscoe Graham Rahal Sam Hornish Jr.
Runner-Up Al Under Jr. Scott Dixon Vitor Meira Scott Dixon James Hinchcliffe Helio Castroneves
I’ve got to thank the fans that came back. I didn’t think there was going to be a lot of people but whoever didn’t come missed a hell of a race. That was some old school Texas right there. - Tony Kannan, who finished third, following the race.
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FINAL PIT STOP
SPEEDREADS
VIDEO SOUND BITES, SOCIAL MEDIA SNAPSHOT
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LIL’ HOSS TV
Firestone 600 winner Graham Rahal talks about his win in Victory Lane at Texas Motor Speedway. Click on photo to watch video.
SOCIAL GATHERING
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F INAL BOX SCORE
2016 FIRESTONE 600
OFFICIAL BOX SCORE Verizon IndyCar Series Firestone 600 August 27, 2016 FP
SP
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22
13 10 8 6 3 15 1 7 17 18 9 12 11 22 19 16 20 14 2 4 21 5
Car Driver 15 5 10 22 3 83 26 12 2 11 98 27 28 19 8 7 41 20 9 14 18 21
Car Name
Graham Rahal James Hinchcliffe Tony Kanaan Simon Pagenaud Helio Castroneves Charlie Kimball Carlos Munoz Will Power Juan Pablo Montoya Sebastien Bourdais Alexander Rossi (R) Marco Andretti Ryan Hunter-Reay Gabby Chaves Max Chilton (R) Mikhail Aleshin Jack Hawksworth Ed Carpenter Scott Dixon Takuma Sato Conor Daly (R) Josef Newgarden
Laps
Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports Honda NTT Data Chevrolet Hewlett Packard Enterprise Chevrolet AAA Insurance Team Penske Chevrolet Tresiba Chevrolet Andretti Autosport Honda Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet hum by Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet Team Hydroxycut-KVSH Racing Chevrolet Castrol Edge/Curb Honda Snapple Honda DHL Honda Boy Scouts of America Honda Gallagher Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet SMP Racing Schmidt Peterson Honda ABC Supply AJ Foyt Racing Honda Fuzzy's Vodka Chevrolet Target Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet ABC Supply AJ Foyt Racing Honda Jonathan Byrd's Hospitality Honda Fuzzy's Ultra Premium Vodka/ECR Chevrolet
248 248 248 248 248 247 247 247 246 246 246 245 245 245 243 231 227 223 211 160 42 41
Reason Out
Pts
Total Pts
Standings
Running Running Running Running Running Running Running Running Running Running Running Running Running Running Running Contact Contact Contact Contact Mechanical Contact Contact
51 43 36 32 31 28 28 24 22 20 19 18 18 16 15 14 13 13 11 10 9 9
394 392 416 529 415 361 382 501 345 334 346 273 348 121 219 301 191 67 397 275 263 406
7 8 3 1 4 10 9 2 13 14 12 17 11 22 19 15 20 25 6 16 18 5
Time of Race: 02:29:24.8886 Avg Speed: 144.901 mph Margin of Victory: 0.0080 seconds Lead Changes: 14 Caution Laps: 53 Fastest Lap: 214.851 mph (24.3797 seconds) on Lap 119 by 9 - Scott Dixon Fastest Leader Lap: 212.836 mph (24.6105 seconds) on Lap 173 by 5 - James Hinchcliffe Verizon P1 Award ($10,000): Carlos Munoz (48.2460 seconds, 217.137 mph) Bonus Awards: Graham Rahal ($30,000), James Hinchcliffe ($20,000), Tony Kanaan ($15,000), Simon Pagenaud ($11,000), Helio Castroneves ($10,000), Charlie Kimball ($9,000), Carlos Munoz ($8,000), Will Power ($6,000), Juan Pablo Montoya ($5,000), Sebastien Bourdais ($4,000), Alexander Rossi ($3,000), Marco Andretti ($2,000) Legend: R = Sunoco Rookie of the Year Candidate; All Cars use fourth-generation Verizon IndyCar Series chassis (IR-12) with Chevrolet or Honda aerodynamic bodywork and Firestone tires. Lap Leaders: Laps 1 - 37 38 - 39 40 41 - 74 75 - 84 85 - 120 121 - 126 127 - 220 221 222 - 225 226 227 - 235 236 237 - 247 248
Lap Leader Summary: Car 26 21 28 5 28 5 3 5 20 5 3 5 10 5 15
Driver Munoz, Carlos Newgarden, Josef Hunter-Reay, Ryan Hinchcliffe, James Hunter-Reay, Ryan Hinchcliffe, James Castroneves, Helio Hinchcliffe, James Carpenter, Ed Hinchcliffe, James Castroneves, Helio Hinchcliffe, James Kanaan, Tony Hinchcliffe, James Rahal, Graham
Car 5 26 28 3 21 10 15 20
Driver Hinchcliffe, James Munoz, Carlos Hunter-Reay, Ryan Castroneves, Helio Newgarden, Josef Kanaan, Tony Rahal, Graham Carpenter, Ed
Caution Flags: Times 6 1 2 2 1 1 1 1
Laps 188 37 11 7 2 1 1 1
No 1 2 3 4 5
Duration 42 to 71 72 to 73 213 to 219 224 to 229 232 to 239
Total Reason for Caution 30 Contact: Cars 18 and 21 in Turn 4 2 Red Flag 7 Contact: Cars 9 and 20 in Turn 1 6 Contact: Cars 3, 8 and 20 in Turn 4 8 Contact: Cars 7 and 41 in Turn 4
Penalties: Car 41 3
Reason Hitting Pit Equiptment Entering a Closed Pit
Lap Penalty 71 Loss of 1 lap 230 Restart at the Back
Information provided by Indy Racing Information System - Copyright INDYCAR, LLC 2016
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