Motegi: Winners and Losers

[Tim Northcutt]

There are a number ofthese that come to mind;

Winners:

1. The Chassis Builders OR the CF shops and suppliers in Indy

Lots of damage this weekend...whether they need a new tub, or need CF parts or materials from suppliers to make their own in-house repairs to get whole before practice starts at Indy a week from now, somebody is going to make a lot of $$$

2. Scott Sharp...He ran strong all week and I believe it will carry over to Indy...

3. Danica....She showed that she is adapting very well and is seeemingly handling the learning curve with equal ability....

4. Dan Wheldon...Maybe it is his year...but having Scheckter run out of gas surre helped him a lot

5. Buddy Rice...gets a black flag that would KILL his chances for any type of finish, but a Yellow flies for Yasakawa, and he receives a "Get out of Jail Free" card by fate...finished 3rd...would have been much farther back..and screwed...without that coincidence.

Just Snake-Bit:

1. Tomas Scheckter and Panther...I have no idea how much he dialed back the fuel, but they knew it would be short....however, there was no way he could pull in on a green flag without going down a complete lap or more...he was the best car on the track in the final 50 laps or so...it almost hurts to watch such misfortune...

God, PLEASE give this driver and team a break!!!

Can't call him a loser...or call for his scalp after today...they were good all day...circumstances dictated their finish with Tomas.

2. Roger Yasukawa...The guy had a GREAT day going before his engine let go.....climbed into the Top Ten spots before his engine blew....

Losers:

1. Every team that is bringing a car that will return in many pieces back to the USA...lots of contact and wrecks...lots of destroyed or severely damaged cars...

2. The TV Announcing Team...sorry but they don't do their homework...

3. Ganassi Racing...they buy a Dallara, only to have Dixon qualify low, then stack it on the 1st lap...They Learned Nothing

4. Dreyer & Reinbold...they get one driver hurt on the first lap...and he is the fastest of the two in practice...the other climbs from 21st to 10th, only to have an engine blow up....

God, PLEASE give this team a break!!!!

5. Penske...decent cars all day...but not up to quals expectations...

I could do more, but proper Forum decorum would prevent me from doing so

[GP Racer]

My winner's -

1 - Scott Sharp of course! For hanging tough and close all day and bringing it home for second. He will be a threat come Indy.

2 - Dan Wheldon, for repeating at Motegi again, and has now "officially" become the driver to beat. Great job!

3 - Delphi Safety Team, because even though they had there hands full, they did a great job with all of the accidents, yellows, and debris.

4 - The Japanese fans, because they don't care about "the split", they just come out in big, enthusiastic numbers and cheer there IndyCar favorites. We could take a lesson...

My Loser's -

1 - Obviously Panther, Scheckter, and Chevy. Arghhh! They had this one in the bag, and how sweet it would have been for all involved to win this, especially Chevy at Motegi. Heartbreaking stuff...

2 - Toyota. It's obvious now that they have made absolutely zero improvements to there engine for 05. Ganassi and RBC have some of the best drivers in the IRL, but they have no chance of seeing a win or even a top 5 this year. Pathetic...

3 - D&R, for having Bucknam crash out on his first turn of his first race, after looking so promising all week, and for Yasakawa, who looked very racy today only to have a rare engine breakdown.

Bring on Indy!

[mac]

Originally Posted by GP Racer

Ganassi and RBC have some of the best drivers in the IRL, but they have no chance of seeing a win or even a top 5 this year.

Probably true on ovals. But I expect the Ganassi trio to be right up there again on road courses.

[climb]

Winners:
1 Wheldon's good and Scheckter's bad luck
2 Danica, Honda

Losers
Penske, Ganassi, Franchitti

[GP Racer]

Originally Posted by mac

Probably true on ovals. But I expect the Ganassi trio to be right up there again on road courses.

Maybe, but there aren't enough of them to make a difference in the standing's here. Thankfully, ovals are still the bread and butter of this series.

[Kicking-back]

Was Wheldon to blame for the Franchitti crash?

[jock25]

Originally Posted by Kicking-back

Was Wheldon to blame for the Franchitti crash?

Difficult one. IMHO there did not appear to be any contact but certainly it looked as if Wheldon checked up mid way through the turn and Franchitti reacted. There have been quite a few quotes kicking about since the race suggesting Dario was very unhappy about Wheldon's move feeling that there was "no need to be that aggressive" on the passing move. Certainly Michael was not very happy after it happened...good thing they did not have a microphone on him!

IMHO Wheldon went into the corner too hot, understeered up and forced Franchitti to move up into the marbles. Whether that constitutes "fault" i think depends on who you were cheering for...

[Refutation]

Dario is more upset that Dan is doing better then he is,then he is about the crash.Dario has never been able to accept that he isent God's gift to racing.

Dan took his line into the corner, Dario was forcing the issue.In that corner there is really only one groove and it's not flatout on the outside.He got into the marbles and payed the price.Dario could've fell in behind Dan for a few laps,let him play rabbit for a while then pass him when the pace settled in a bit.

I think back to the Daytona 24 hour race when Dario hit a GT Class car heading onto the banking and cut down a tire.It was clearly a racing incident,and an avoidable one on Dario's part.Dario being Dario went and blamed the GT Class guy calling him an idiot.Dario was driving like it was the last lap,when he should've been saving the equipment.

Winners
Dan Wheldon
Scott Sharp
Buddy Rice
Danica Patrick
Bryan Herta

Losers
Dario for being a whiner
ESPN for cutting out chunks of green flag racing but showing every caution lap Danica lead at the beginning.

[GP Racer]

Originally Posted by Refutation

Dario is more upset that Dan is doing better then he is,then he is about the crash.Dario has never been able to accept that he isent God's gift to racing.

I think back to the Daytona 24 hour race when Dario hit a GT Class car heading onto the banking and cut down a tire.It was clearly a racing incident,and an avoidable one on Dario's part.Dario being Dario went and blamed the GT Class guy calling him an idiot.Dario was driving like it was the last lap,when he should've been saving the equipment.

I remember that incident quite clearly myself, and I was stunned when I heard his reaction!

It's funny how he didn't except any blame at St. Pete though, when he skipped across the curb, and took out the 5th place Scott Sharp late in the race. He got 3rd, and Scott got zippo. He never seem's to take any blame in any incidents that I can remember, but he is always quick to lay blame! He is one of the few drivers in this series that I wouldn't miss if he left tommorrow.

As for your first comment, it seem's to ring true!

[jock25]

Originally Posted by GP Racer

He is one of the few drivers in this series that I wouldn't miss if he left tommorrow.

Is that so a 'talented' American driver can have his seat? I see where this is headed GPRacer! (following your comments in the IRL/CC unification thread)

Dario may not be the best driver out there but some of these comments are a bit harsh.
How can it be "racing incident" Refutation when it was a prototype passing a backmarking GT class car? I agree Dario didn't need to hold the high line at Motegi but most of the points differential between him and Dan "should i have an English or neo-American accent today" Wheldon is due to bad/good luck - engine failure at Homestead, fuel-tank failure at St Pete's versus lucking in at St Pete's, and Motegi etc...

[GP Racer]

Originally Posted by jock25

Is that so a 'talented' American driver can have his seat? I see where this is headed GPRacer! (following your comments in the IRL/CC unification thread)

Dario may not be the best driver out there but some of these comments are a bit harsh.

Wow, just when I thought that nobody reads my posts, I found a guy that not only reads them, but actually remembers what I said! Amazing!

While I guess have made it pretty clear that I think the IRL need's more American drivers, it's not because I have anything against most of the current crop of foreign drivers. I just believe in order for the IRL to grab the headlines and restore it's rightful place in the American psyche, it will need more home-grown hero's.

I am a big Scott Sharp fan, because he is a home-town guy, sort of, and an original IRL guy. I guess because he isn't a Penske/Ganassi/AGR guy, he seem's to get little respect out there, as Dario proved when he punted him off, and there was absolutely zero discussion about it anywhere. Scott handled it far better and with more class after that race than Dario ever would have.

My problem with Dario is that he whines to much, in the same annoying way that Junquera does, and he is not exactly a very good ambassador for this series in the same way Wheldon, Kannan, Manning and Castroneves are.Those guys are always talking up this series, and are damn glad to be here, while Dario seem's to be lukewarm at best. He has never wholeheartedly stood up for the IRL as far as I know. He also lacks a toughness that the other's mentioned seem to have. Probably a reason he or Junquera could never make it in F1.

Sometime's you gotta take the blame and move on, and Dario never seem's able to do that... Of course this is all IMHO!

[jock25]

I totally agree about the need for more American drivers in order to spark the imagination of the US public.

Dario may not be leading the field in 'talking up' the IRL but I don't think Castroneves can be classed as a good ambassador. He does what Roger tells him (as you would) but it is obvious in what he says (or does not) that he would rather be in a 90% street/road course championship. Remember how excited he got at the prospect of St Petes/Infineon etc.?
As for Wheldon, Kanaan and Manning - IMHO the two Brits had careers that were going nowhere before the IRL offered a lifeline and the IRL made Kanaan. Dario on the other hand was a race winner and championship challenger in CART (he lost the title on count-back or does nobody remember that?!) and had to go to the IRL when CART imploded.

[mac]

Originally Posted by jock25

As for Wheldon, Kanaan and Manning - IMHO the two Brits had careers that were going nowhere before the IRL offered a lifeline and the IRL made Kanaan.

I would dispute your evaluation of Kanaan and Manning. Manning was doing fine at in Champ Car, but jumped at the opportunity to be well-paid to drive for a large team - and good luck to him for that.

And I would argue that the IRL only made Kanaan because he never really did the business in CART. He was always super-quick on ovals though, and when he joined a multi-car super team with dominant Honda power in IRL, it was a match made in heaven.

For all his talent, I thought Kanaan frankly under-performed in CART.

Originally Posted by jock25

Dario on the other hand was a race winner and championship challenger in CART (he lost the title on count-back or does nobody remember that?!) and had to go to the IRL when CART imploded.

Dario didn't have to do anything. He followed his team and Honda's megadollars - and again, good luck to him for that.

[jock25]

Originally Posted by mac

And I would argue that the IRL only made Kanaan because he never really did the business in CART. He was always super-quick on ovals though, and when he joined a multi-car super team with dominant Honda power in IRL, it was a match made in heaven.

Exactly! So he is going to be falling over himself to talk up the IRL compared to other drivers! My comments were made in response to GP Racer suggesting Wheldon, Manning and Kanaan were good ambassadors for the series whereas Dario simply "whinges".

Since we are driving wildly off topic:

Motegi Winners:

Wheldon - for lucking in YET again...his bubble has to burst at some point, hopefully Indy on the last lap... while leading.
Rahal-Letterman - for proving that they have not completely forgotten how to engineer fast racing cars.
Buddy Rice - great time to get a yellow!

Losers:

Tomas Scheckter
Panther Racing
Ganassi - just waiting to turn right again

[Team Owner]

Losers:

Over half of the people who went to Japan have been sick since they got there and flew back. The ANA charter that I was on almost set down in Anchorage Alaska because a Cheever crewmember was running a 103+ fever. Several of the IRLs tech guys are very ill with some kind of lung disease and sinusitis. One of them not only has the lung disorder but has a bacterial infection in his kidneys and prostate.

Winners:


AGR

[Snrub]

Good god!