Rounds 13 & 14: Honda Indy Toronto. Exhibition Place, Toronto. 18th - 20th July, 2014

[bjohnsonsmith]

Originally a CART event, it was known as the Molson Indy Toronto and was first held in 1986 and won by Bobby Rahal. The race eventually morphed into a Champ Car World Series event and continued until 2007. Though the unification of the Champ Car World Series and the Indy Racing League was announced on February 22, 2008, the race was cancelled that year but returned in 2009 and has remained on the calendar ever since. It is the second-longest running street race after Long Beach.

This coming weekend, Toronto will host the third and final double-header of this year's IndyCar season. Like last year's event and even though it was aborted, Race 1 will be a standing start.

The track length has varied over the years, from 1.784 miles in 1986-95, to 1.755 miles from 1996 to now.

Track Layout:


Length: 1.755 mi - 2.824 km
Turns: 11
Lap record: July 17th, 1999. Gil de Ferran, Walker Racing, Reynard99i-Honda, 57.143 seconds, 110.565 mph - 177.937 km/h

Last year's winner, Race 1:
Scott Dixon
Chip Ganassi Racing
Dallara DW12-Honda

Laps: 85
Distance: 149.175 mi - 240.073 km
Race Time: 1:41:17
Average Speed: 88.37

Last year's winner, Race 2:
Scott Dixon
Chip Ganassi Racing
Dallara DW12-Honda

Laps: 85
Distance: 149.175 mi - 240.073 km
Race Time: 1:35:02
Average Speed: 94.177

TV Coverage:
NBCSN
Green flag for both races, 3:00pm ET.

[rwintle]

Thanks for this.

Weather looks like it will be 26-27 degrees C and fine. That's Not Hot by Toronto July standards.

[NaBUru38]

Luca Filippii will race for Rahal.

[rwintle]

A couple of weeks ago, James Hinchcliffe gave Sebastien Bourdais some trophy handling advice (with help from a Scott Dixon cutout):


Hinchcliffe's trophy advice - Toronto 2014 by Richard Wintle, on Flickr

There's a link to the video you can see the guy recording, in the description of the photo.

I had no idea the track length had changed (albeit just a bit) - must go and see what it used to look like.

[HighParker]

Originally Posted by rwintle

I had no idea the track length had changed (albeit just a bit) - must go and see what it used to look like.

Construction of the Direct Energy Centre led to the last turn having to be changed.

[rwintle]

Originally Posted by HighParker

Construction of the Direct Energy Centre led to the last turn having to be changed.

Thank you for that! I tried to look up old maps and didn't get anywhere. The turn 10/11 duo is certainly very different now.

Some folks I work with speak fondly of the old "photo towers" as shown on this map. Lots of other nostalgic things here too - Sports Hall of Fame, the old Exhibition Stadium (saw a few concerts there!), and so forth.

[bjohnsonsmith]

Originally Posted by HighParker

Construction of the Direct Energy Centre led to the last turn having to be changed.

Where did you find that? That would have been great in the intro.

[HighParker]

Originally Posted by bjohnsonsmith

Where did you find that?

I took a digital photo of a page in the 1986 race program.

[NaBUru38]

Originally Posted by rwintle

A couple of weeks ago, James Hinchcliffe gave Sebastien Bourdais some trophy handling advice (with help from a Scott Dixon cutout):


Hinchcliffe's trophy advice - Toronto 2014 by Richard Wintle, on Flickr

Haha!

[bjohnsonsmith]

Bourdais on pole, his first since 2007.

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/115037

Pos Driver Team/Engine Time Gap
1. Sebastien Bourdais KV/Chevy 58.9479s
2. Will Power Penske/Chevy 59.1025s +0.1546s
3. Helio Castroneves Penske/Chevy 59.1499s +0.2020s
4. Ryan Hunter-Reay Andretti/Honda 59.2672s +0.3193s
5. Simon Pagenaud Schmidt/Honda 59.3972s +0.4493s
6. Tony Kanaan Ganassi/Chevy 59.9987s +1.0508s
7. Luca Filippi Rahal/Honda 59.2753s Round 2
8. Justin Wilson Coyne/Honda 59.3406s Round 2
9. James Hinchcliffe Andretti/Honda 59.3526s Round 2
10. Ryan Briscoe Ganassi/Chevy 59.5319s Round 2
11. Juan Pablo Montoya Penske/Chevy 59.8201s Round 2
12. Scott Dixon Ganassi/Chevy 1m00.2193s Round 2
13. Josef Newgarden Fisher/Honda 59.4455s Group 1
14. Graham Rahal Rahal/Honda 59.9495s Group 2
15. Takuma Sato Foyt/Honda 59.5367s Group 1
16. Mike Conway Carpenter/Chevy 59.9904s Group 2
17. Carlos Munoz Andretti/Honda 59.5708s Group 1
18. Jack Hawksworth Herta/Honda 1m00.1856s Group 2
19. Sebastian Saavedra KV/Chevy 59.6806s Group 1
20. Charlie Kimball Ganassi/Chevy 1m00.2304s Group 2
21. Carlos Huertas Coyne/Honda 59.7244s Group 1
22. Mikhail Aleshin Schmidt/Honda 1m00.2379s Group 2
23. Marco Andretti Andretti/Honda 59.9816s Group 1

[bjohnsonsmith]

Has anyone got a good feed?

[bjohnsonsmith]

I've got a feed of sorts but no volume. It's very wet and Race 1 has been Red flagged.

[bjohnsonsmith]

It will be a single file rolling start.

[bjohnsonsmith]

The pace car lost it and Power slides into the tyre wall before the race got started and the yellow comes out.

[fieldodreams79]

Pacecar and Power both have shunts before they got going.

[skells22]

and the red back out

[fieldodreams79]

Second red flag of the day before they start. Indycar seems to have been really dragging this out without making any kind of hard decision.

[bjohnsonsmith]

Looks like Penske have got Power's car fixed, that's pretty impressive.

[bjohnsonsmith]

I think a quick trip to the pub is in order. By the time I get back the race will probably be under the umpteenth caution.

[fieldodreams79]

Originally Posted by bjohnsonsmith

I think a quick trip to the pub is in order. By the time I get back the race will probably be under the umpteenth caution.

Wise choice...postponed until tomorrow for a Double header Sunday.

Marshall Pruett ‏@marshallpruett 9m New update from @IndyCar: Race 1, 75 laps, based on Sat qual order, start at 10:30am. Race 2, 4:15 start, 75 laps, start otder=Entrant pts

I guess that means Power gets his place back...

[bjohnsonsmith]

Originally Posted by fieldodreams79

Wise choice...postponed until tomorrow for a Double header Sunday.


I guess that means Power gets his place back...

So both races tomorrow, that's going to be tough.

[Teretonga]

Originally Posted by bjohnsonsmith

So both races tomorrow, that's going to be tough.

They could shorten them both a bit, and then run one as the first in the morning and the other as the last race of the day, weather permitting.

The finishing order of the first race or the championship points order could be the grid position for the second race.

Everything is possible if there is some flexibility in the way they look at things.

[JHamilton]

The double header tomorrow surprises me as I figured they would have one race and extend the length. Whatev, just gimme some racing. I'm jonesing.

[Salamus]

I was on vacation the past couple of days so I thought I was going to miss Race 1. I guess it being postponed was a good thing for me.

[bjohnsonsmith]

Honda Indy Toronto Races 1 and 2.




TV: CNBC telecasts Race 1 at 10:30 a.m. (ET) and NBCSN telecasts Race 2 at 3 p.m. (ET). Bob Varsha is the chief announcer with analysts Paul Tracy and Townsend Bell. The taped Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires race will air at 6 p.m. (ET).

Addendum: I don't know how accurate this is, as the feed I've got for Race 1 shows the telecast is from NBCSN.