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Takuma Sato was relatively untroubled throughout the 90 laps of the Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama, as he took the fourth win of his IndyCar career.
The Japanese driver was in control for much of the race, only losing the lead after he made his first pit stop before a number of other drivers, who soon followed suit.
Sato had a scary moment in the final laps of the race, locking up and bouncing through the grass which damaged the diffuser. However, he escaped without major issues and finished 2.5 seconds ahead of Scott Dixon, who held off Sebastien Bourdais in the final laps.
Bourdais was the only driver that saw the chequered flag that completed the race with two pit stops.
Sato held a larger gap before a full course yellow was deployed in the final third of the race, as Graham Rahal who started alongside teammate Sato at the start stopped on the circuit.
There was further trouble as there was a scurry for the pit lane under the yellow, which resulted in Max Chilton hitting the barriers as he was cut off by Tony Kanaan, who too was attempting to drive into the pits.
After a disappointing result in qualifying, Josef Newgarden managed to climb his way up into fourth place, passing Alexander Rossi in the final laps.
Arrow Schmidt Peterson Racing secured its best result of the year as James Hinchcliffe crossed the line in sixth, one place ahead of teammate Marcus Ericsson, who fought his way from the back of the field with some impressive overtakes to take his first top ten finish of the year.
Ryan Hunter-Reay was eighth, ahead of Simon Pagenaud and Felix Roseqvist, who rounded out the top ten.
After a tough day on Saturday, Will Power's woes continued into the race, as he found himself off the pace throughout. The Australian even went for a spin early on in the race as he struggled for grip.
It was an unwelcome racing return to Colton Herta, who made IndyCar history two weeks ago, becoming the series' youngest ever winner.
However, the 19-year-old had major engine issues that couldn't be managed, resulting in a retirement for the California-born teen.
| Pos. | Driver | Team | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
undefined 1. |
undefined Takuma Sato |
undefined Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing |
undefined - |
undefined 2. |
undefined Scott Dixon |
undefined Chip Ganassi Racing |
undefined +2.3874 |
undefined 3. |
undefined Sebastien Bourdais |
undefined Dale Coyne Racing |
undefined +2.7933 |
undefined 4. |
undefined Josef Newgarden |
undefined Team Penske |
undefined +7.9721 |
undefined 5. |
undefined Alexander Rossi |
undefined Andretti Autosport |
undefined +8.8518 |
undefined 6. |
undefined James Hinchcliffe |
undefined Schmidt Peterson Motorsports |
undefined +9.4356 |
undefined 7. |
undefined Marcus Ericsson |
undefined Schmidt Peterson Motorsports |
undefined +13.7580 |
undefined 8. |
undefined Ryan Hunter-Reay |
undefined Andretti Autosport |
undefined +15.2506 |
undefined 9. |
undefined Simon Pagenaud |
undefined Team Penske |
undefined +22.7848 |
undefined 10. |
undefined Felix Rosenqvist |
undefined Chip Ganassi Racing |
undefined +26.2450 |
undefined 11. |
undefined Will Power |
undefined Team Penske |
undefined +31.8178 |
undefined 12. |
undefined Zach Veach |
undefined Andretti Autosport |
undefined +33.9035 |
undefined 13 |
undefined Jack Harvey |
undefined Meyer Shank Racing |
undefined +34.9655 |
undefined 14. |
undefined Marco Andretti |
undefined Andretti Autosport |
undefined +39.3119 |
undefined 15. |
undefined Santino Ferrucci |
undefined Dale Coyne Racing |
undefined +40.0094 |
undefined 16. |
undefined Patricio O'Ward |
undefined Carlin |
undefined +40.6728 |
undefined 17. |
undefined Spencer Pigot |
undefined Ed Carpenter Racing |
undefined +42.5718 |
undefined 18. |
undefined Tony Kanaan |
undefined A.J. Foyt Enterprises |
undefined +1 Lap |
undefined 19. |
undefined Ed Jones |
undefined Ed Carpenter Racing |
undefined +1 Lap |
undefined 20. |
undefined Matheus Leist |
undefined A.J. Foyt Enterprises |
undefined +1 Lap |
undefined 21. |
undefined Ben Hanley |
undefined DragonSpeed |
undefined +2 Laps |
undefined 22. |
undefined Max Chilton |
undefined Carlin |
undefined +2 Laps |
undefined 23. |
undefined Graham Rahal |
undefined Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing |
undefined +35 Laps |
undefined 24 |
undefined Colton Herta |
undefined Harding Racing |
undefined +39 Laps |
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Grand Prix of Belgium
C. Sainz jr
Replies (1)
Login to replyKean
Posts: 692
I am really enjoying the racing in Indycar. Nailbiting stuff. Gotta give it up for Ericsson, he is performing really well in the races. Too bad his qualifying is lacking, but then again we're talking 0,05 sec between several cars in quali so it's really tight.