Honda Racing Report
Sunday, August 29, 2004
Firestone Indy 225 Race Report
Circuit: Nazareth Speedway (0.95 mile oval), Nazareth, Pa.
2003 Winner: Helio Castroneves (Toyota) 123.606 mph average speed
Weather: Partly cloudy, humid, 86 degrees F
Race Results:
Ps. |
St. |
Driver |
Team |
Engine |
Chassis |
Laps |
Average Speed/Notes |
1. |
8. |
Dan Wheldon |
Andretti Green Racing |
Honda |
Dallara |
225 |
118.874 mph average |
2. |
3. |
Tony Kanaan |
Andretti Green Racing |
Honda |
Dallara |
225 |
-3.555 seconds |
3. |
4. |
Dario Franchitti |
Andretti Green Racing |
Honda |
Dallara |
225 |
-4.026 seconds |
4. |
10. |
Buddy Rice |
Rahal Letterman Racing |
Honda |
Panoz G-Force |
225 |
-4.445 seconds |
5. |
1. |
Helio Castroneves |
Team Penske |
Toyota |
Dallara |
225 |
-5.261 seconds |
6. |
5. |
Darren Manning |
Target Chip Ganassi |
Toyota |
Panoz G-Force |
225 |
-5.422 seconds |
7. |
6. |
Adrian Fernandez |
Fernandez Racing |
Honda |
Panoz G-Force |
225 |
-6.898 seconds |
8. |
7. |
Bryan Herta |
Andretti Green Racing |
Honda |
Dallara |
225 |
-8.341 seconds |
9. |
12. |
Scott Dixon |
Target Chip Ganassi |
Toyota |
Panoz G-Force |
225 |
-8.760 seconds |
10. |
9. |
Vitor Meira |
Rahal Letterman Racing |
Honda |
Panoz G-Force |
225 |
-9.117 seconds |
11. |
2. |
Sam Hornish Jr. |
Team Penske |
Toyota |
Dallara |
225 |
-9.956 seconds |
12. |
14. |
Alex Barron |
Cheever Indy Racing |
Cheevrolet |
Dallara |
225 |
-18.755 seconds |
21. |
18. |
Kosuke Matsuura |
Super Aguri Fernandez |
Honda |
Panoz G-Force |
115 |
Not running-mechanical |
22. |
15. |
Mark Taylor |
Access Motorsports |
Honda |
Panoz G-Force |
57 |
Not running-contact |
Wheldon Leads Another Honda Sweep at Nazareth
For the fourth consecutive race this season, Honda drivers completed a sweep
of the top finishing positions at Sunday's Firestone Indy 225 at Nazareth
Speedway. Andretti Green Racing's Dan Wheldon led the way, with teammates
Tony Kanaan and Dario Franchitti making it a 1-2-3 IndyCar Series finish for
Nazareth native and team owner Michael Andretti.
Yet another Honda driver, Rahal Letterman Racing's Buddy Rice, crossed
the line in fourth place to follow up on Honda sweeps of Michigan International
Speedway, Kentucky Speedway and Pikes Peak International Raceway in the last
five weeks. The victory was Honda's 12th IndyCar win in a row, dating
back to Kanaan's triumph at Phoenix in late March.
Starting eighth, Wheldon worked his way up to fifth place during the first 50
laps of the 225-lap contest, then gained one more position during the first
round of pit stops on Lap 63. Another quick pit stop on Lap 146, when his team
elected to save time by not giving him a full load of fuel, moved Wheldon into
a lead he would maintain to the finish.
Owner/driver Adrian Fernandez ran as high as fourth in the middle stages of
the race, but lost several positions on a Lap 170 restart. He finished seventh,
just ahead of Bryan Herta in the fourth Andretti Green Racing entry. Vitor Meira
rounded out the top 10 finishers in the second Rahal Letterman Honda.
The tight and tricky Nazareth oval is traditionally hard on rookie drivers,
and today was no exception as neither of Honda's first-year drivers were
able to complete the race. Mark Taylor crashed his Access Motorsports entry
out of the contest after contact with Townsend Bell on Lap 58, while rookie
points leader Kosuke Matsuura dropped out after 115 laps with brake problems
on his Super Aguri Fernandez Racing machine.
After eight races in the last ten weeks, the Indy Racing League now takes a
week off before beginning the final three-race "stretch run" with
the Delphi Indy 300 at Chicagoland Speedway on September 12.
Drivers' Championship (after 13 of 16 races)
1. Tony Kanaan |
503 points (3 wins) |
9. Darren Manning |
296 |
2. Dan Wheldon |
431 (3 wins) |
10. Bryan Herta |
295 |
3. Buddy Rice |
427 (3 wins) |
11. Scott Dixon |
277 |
4. Helio Castroneves |
359 |
12. Alex Barron |
264 |
5. Dario Franchitti |
354 (2 wins) |
13. Kosuke Matsuura |
239 |
6. Sam Hornish Jr. |
314 (1 win) |
. |
7. Adrian Fernandez |
312 (1 win) |
8. Vitor Meira |
302 |
19. Mark Taylor |
173 |
Manufacturers' Championship: |
. |
Rookie of the Year: |
1. Honda |
127 (12 wins) |
1. Kosuke Matsuura |
239 |
2. Toyota |
90 (1 win) |
2. Ed Carpenter |
196 |
3. Chevrolet |
69 |
3. Mark Taylor |
173 |
Dan Wheldon (#26 Jim Beam/Klein Tools Andretti Green Racing
Honda) Started 8th, finished 1st, third victory this year, moves to second in
points standings, 12th consecutive Honda win: "Obviously, this [podium
sweep] is a fantastic team achievement. A lot of people have said that the Andretti
Green team has been dominant on the one-mile ovals this season, and it may look
that way on paper. But in
reality, that hasn't necessarily been the case. I thought the Penske cars were
very strong today, and the Rahal Letterman cars, too. But take no credit away
from my guys ... to have three cars [from the same team] on the podium is an
exceptional achievement. Their pit work was outstanding. They got me out fast
on the last stop and that's what won me the race. My car was excellent running
by itself, and at the end of the race, the car was absolutely exceptional."
Tony Kanaan (#11 7-Eleven Andretti Green Racing Honda) Started
3rd, finished 2nd, continues to lead the drivers' championship: "When
we got to the last pit stop I knew his crew was going to 'short fill'
Dan [Wheldon] and, sure enough, that's what they did. Our cars were very
equal today, we had nearly identical setups, so I needed traffic to create an
opportunity for me to pass him for the win. But with the late yellow [flags],
I never got that chance. But Dan drove a great race and had an excellent car
today. One-two-three is a great result for the team and for [team owner] Michael
[Andretti]."
Dario Franchitti (#27 Arca/Ex Andretti Green Racing Honda)
Started 4th, finished 3rd: "It was a typical Nazareth race - exciting
at some points and frustrating at other times. Traffic played a big role as
always here. I think one time I went from fifth, back down to seventh as I got
balked, and then back up to fourth all in the same lap. It was warm out there
today. I think that led to a lot of guys going 'loose' [losing rear
tire adhesion] and created passing situations. In the closing laps Buddy [Rice]
was quick coming out of Turn Two, but I was faster into Turn Three so he never
could get a run at me."
Buddy Rice (#15 Pioneer/Argent Mortgage Rahal Letterman Racing
Honda) Started 10th, finished 4th: "I was driving pretty hard today. I
was shifting a lot, as many as three gears down sometimes in Turn Three. I think
I used up the brakes too. I was trying to get some runs on the guys in front
and I was working the car all over the track. I burned the tires off in the
first stint because I was trying to get by guys in some places I shouldn't
have. But after the first pit stop, the car was good. I was trying to fake some
guys out on the restarts and it worked a couple of times. We had a solid day.
We scored some points. We're going into three races that we can definitely
win. So, I'm looking forward to those races."
Adrian Fernandez (#5 Telmex/Quaker State Fernandez Racing
Honda) Started 6th, finished 7th: "Another good weekend but, unfortunately,
we lost our fourth-place due to a misunderstanding. It was nobody's fault.
I was trying to anticipate the restart and passed a few guys before the green.
But then I heard 'no green' and got confused thinking the start
wasn't going to happen. I backed off and was in the wrong gear and suddenly
I see the green. We lost three positions and that was it. My car was as good
as any car on the track. I passed two guys at the beginning of the race and
went from sixth to fourth. This was just a mistake of not understanding what
was happening, but we learned from this one."