Rounds 7 and 8. Chevrolet Dual in Detroit, June 1-3, 2018.

[bjohnsonsmith]

Rounds 7 and 8. Chevrolet Dual in Detroit, June 1-3, 2018.

No sooner has the chequered flag waived at Indy but the next two rounds of the season are upon us.

Back in 2014, Detroit was the first of three double headers on the IndyCar calendar. Now, The Chevrolet Dual in
Detroit is the only double header left on the IndyCar calendar.

Detroit was originally the venue for the F1 Detroit Grand Prix, held from 1982-1988. It was dropped from the F1 calendar after 1988, when F1's governing body FISA declared the temporary pit area sub standard and because of the drivers dislike of the event due to track disintegration, which was particularly bad that year. It was planned to move the F1 event to Belle Isle in 1989 but no agreement was finalised and F1 went to Phoenix and Detroit became a CART event, with the race held on a slightly modified version of the F1 track.

In 1992, the event finally moved to Belle Isle, where it was held up to and including 2001. In 1998 the track was extended from 2.1 mi (3.4 km), to 2.36 mi (3.80 km). The race was revived from 2007-2008, as part of the IRL's IndyCar Series, using the original CART layout but with Turn 8 tightened. However, it was cancelled from 2009-2011 due to the downturn in Detroit's automotive industry and the city's economic problems.

The race was revived again in 2012 and since 2013 the track has reverted to the 1998-2001 CART layout, with changes to Turn 3 and 7 and The Strand.

Some Trivia:
Hélio Castroneves got his first CART win at Detroit in 2000, driving a Reynard 2Ki-Honda HR-0 V8t, for Marlboro Team Penske and has won the Detroit Grand Prix the most times: 2000, 2001 and 2014.

The team with the most wins, 7. Team Penske: 1991, 1994, 2000, 2001, 2014, Race 1 and 2.

1982-1988 F1 track layout:


1992-1997 Original CART track layout:


1998-2001 CART track layout layout:


2007-08 and 2012 layout:


Current layout:


Length: 2.35 Mile (3.78 km)
Turns: 14

Lap record:
Takuma Sato, 4 Jun 2017.
1:13.6732, 114.831 mph (184.802 kmh).
Andretti Autosport,
Dallara DW12-Honda HI17RTT V6 Indy, Verizon IndyCar Series.

Last year, the qualifying for Race 1 was reduced to 1 session due to time constraints. Rahal inherited pole from Castroneves as Castroneves was ruled to have failed to slow for a yellow flag. Castroneves still started second, as his second fastest lap still put him the fastest of his group.

Race 1: Rahal took the lead, however Hinchcliffe who was 5th spun at Turn 1, stalling the car bringing out the first caution period. He was able to rejoin the race as he had managed to avoid any contact. Racing resumed on Lap 5. Around Lap 10, drivers on a three-stop strategy began their pit stops, including Castroneves and Newgarden. Around Lap 20, drivers on a two-stop strategy began their pit stops, including Rahal and Dixon. After the pit cycle was complete, Castroneves and Newgarden had inherited the first two spots, with Rahal some six seconds adrift.

The second caustion period came on Lap 25 when Daly and Kimball made contact. Daly retired but Kimball was able to make it back to the pits to repair the front wing. Newgarden pitted under the caution, with the top five now Castroneves, Rahal, Takuma Sato, Rossi, and Hinchcliffe.

Racing resumed on Lap 31 and five laps later, Castroneves pitted for a second time, giving Rahal the lead. Sato pitted soon after, moving Rossi up to second and Hinchcliffe up to third. Drivers on a two-stop strategy began to pit just after Lap 45. After that cycle of stops, Rahal held the lead over Castroneves, though Castroneves still had to make his final stop, which would put Dixon into second place and Hinchcliffe third. The order would stay the same for the remainder of the race, as Rahal crossed the line just over six seconds ahead of Dixon. Hinchcliffe managed to just stave off a hard charging Josef Newgarden, to complete the podium.

Rahal's victory made him the seventh driver in seven races to win during the 2017 IndyCar Series season. For Rahal, it was his fifth career victory and his first on a street circuit since his first win at St. Petersburg in 2008.


Race 2: Sato took pole breaking the track record and took the race lead, followed by Hunter-Reay, Rahal, Castroneves and Hinchcliffe. However, Hinchcliffe decided to pit on Lap 6 but was given a drive-thru for going to fast in pit-lane.

On Lap 10, Rahal passed Hunter-Reay for second place, meanwhile those drivers on a three-stop strategy began to pit, including Dixon who lost a large amount of time due to a fueling issue, which dropped him down to 18th. Castroneves and Hunter-Reay were both forced onto the three-stop strategy after the two made contact, as Castroneves attempted a pass, resulting in flat tyre for Castroneves and Hunter-Reay suffering front wing damage. They emerged from their stops 18th and 19th respectively. The front runners were now Sato, Rahal and Will Power, who had greatly benefited from the Castroneves/Hunter-Reay incident.

On Lap 22, those on a two-stop strategy began to pit, including Sato, Rahal, Power, Pagenaud, and Rossi. Rahal was able to overtake Sato and eventually took the lead from Newgarden, who was on the three-stop strategy, when he pitted on Lap 29.

The last cycle of pitstops came on Lap 45 with Rahal able to keep the lead but Newgarden on his three-stop strategy, now moved into second ahead of team mate Power.

On lap 66, with the race in its closing laps, Hinchcliffe came to a halt in Turn 2, bringing out the first caution of the race. At the same time, Spencer Pigot's engine blew, ending his race. Race Control decided to red flag the race for clean-up, to allow for a green flag finish. Racing resumed with 2 laps to go but despite the field being bunched up, the top five did not change.

Rahal completed his domination of the weekend, winning by just over a second from Newgarden. In doing so, Rahal became the first driver to sweep the doubleheader weekend at Detroit and the first driver to win a doubleheader since Dixon at Toronto in 2013. It also marked the first time in his career that Rahal won consecutive races. He also became the first driver during the 2017 IndyCar Series season to win a second race.


Race 1
Pole:
Graham Rahal, 114.374 Mph (184.067 kmh).
Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing.
Dallara DW12-Honda HI17RTT V6 Indy,

Last year's winner:
Graham Rahal,
Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing.
Dallara DW12-Honda HI17RTT V6 Indy.

Laps: 70
Distance: 164.5 Miles (264.737 km)
Race Time: 1:35:49
Average Speed: 103.015 mph (165.786 km)
Caution periods: 2
Caution Laps: 6


Race 2
Pole:
Takuma Sato. 1:13.6732, 114.831 mph (184.802 kmh)
Andretti Autosport,
Dallara DW12-Honda HI17RTT V6 Indy.

Last year's winner:
Graham Rahal,
Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing.
Dallara DW12-Honda HI17RTT V6 Indy.

Laps: 70
Distance: 164.5 Miles (264.737 km)
Race Time: 1:33:36
Average Speed: 105.442 mph (169.69 km)
Caution periods: 1
Caution Laps: 2

Race broadcast:
NBCSN.
Race 1 June 2, 3:30pm ET
Race 2 June 3, 3:30pm ET