Motegi Race Thread *** SPOILERS!!! ***

[rustyfan]

Seeing as no one else has posted one despite the race being over, I might as well do it myself.

Also, I think it would be a good idea to implement an unwritten rule that no race spoilers whatsoever are to be posted in thread titles.

As I said in this thread, it's commonplace on other forums and it isn't brain surgery.

Do NOT scroll down if you don't want to learn the results of the race.































Anyhow, with that out of the way, congrats to Dan Wheldon on picking up his first career victory!


Race story off the IndyCar website;

Wheldon Dominates For First Career Victory - Andretti Green Racing Driver Gives Honda Initial Win At Home Venue
By Dave Lewandowski
indyracing.com

Saturday Apr 17, 2004

MOTEGI, Japan – The kid is on a roll.

Dan Wheldon, whose looks and persona belie his 25 years, dominated the Indy Japan 300 on April 17 for his first career IRL IndyCar® Series victory. It was his sixth consecutive top-5 finish and ninth top-10 finish in a row.

How dominating was the first victory by an Englishman in an Indy-style car race since September 1997, when Mark Blundell won at California Speedway?

He led 192 laps – the fifth-highest in IndyCar Series history and the second-most for a 200-lap event. He beat Andretti Green Racing teammate Tony Kanaan to the finish line by 1.4454 seconds. He had the fastest race lap (27.2016 seconds; 201.165 mph) on the 1.5-mile egg-shaped oval. He also was the MBNA Pole Award winner with a fast lap of 26.5938 seconds (205.762 mph).

“It was an absolutely awesome day for me to win my first race,” said Wheldon, who gave engine manufacturer Honda its first victory in seven attempts at its home track. “The race itself was tough when you’ve got Tony Kanaan following you, pressing hard, and Darren Manning was pushing him. It makes it very difficult. But it worked out well for me.

“I think Honda kicked butt, and I think they deserve this more than any other engine manufacturer in the world. Their dedication to motorsports is second to none. I’m truly privileged to have one of their engines in the back of my car.”

Toyota-powered cars placed 3-5. Marlboro Team Penske driver Helio Castroneves was followed by Target Chip Ganassi Racing teammates Darren Manning and Scott Dixon. Dixon, the 2003 IndyCar Series champion competed with a hairline (non-displaced) fracture on the tip of the left fibula in the ankle. He suffered the injury when his car made contact with the Turn 4 wall in the first practice session April 15.

It was a race reversal for Wheldon and Kanaan. In the Copper World Indy 200 at Phoenix International Raceway, Wheldon started from the pole and finished third. Kanaan joined his teammate on the front row, took the lead on the first lap and cruised to the victory. Under a clear sky and temperature in the mid-70s at Twin Ring Motegi, Wheldon didn’t allow anyone to slip past.

“I think for the team, Andretti Green Racing, they worked so hard in trying to achieve not only victories for their drivers, but domination,” said Wheldon, driver of the No. 26 Klein Tools/Jim Beam Dallara/Honda/Firestone. “They had four cars that ran very competitively.”

Said team co-owner Michael Andretti, who also watched AGR drivers Dario Franchitti finish seventh and Bryan Herta 14th: “It’s huge for the team and for Honda. They’ve been trying so hard and I’m so happy we were able to do it. The way we did it by dominating with Dan and Tony was just a perfect weekend. (Wheldon) just drove a perfect race. He deserves it.”

Full Race Results;

Pos Driver Name Car# Car Name C E T Start Qual Speed Laps Xs Led Laps Led Status Earnings Pts
1 Dan Wheldon 26 Klein Tools/ Jim Beam D H F 1 205.762 200 3 192 Running $120,720 53
2 Tony Kanaan 11 Team 7-Eleven D H F 3 205.690 200 0 0 Running $99,440 40
3 Helio Castroneves 3 Marlboro Team Penske D T F 15 203.281 200 1 4 Running $78,020 35
4 Darren Manning 10 Target Chip Ganassi Racing G T F 10 204.345 200 1 2 Running $62,340 32
5 Scott Dixon 1 Target Chip Ganassi Racing G T F 6 204.985 200 0 0 Running $56,420 30
6 Buddy Rice 15 Pioneer/ Argent Mortgage G H F 5 205.408 200 0 0 Running $49,220 28
7 Dario Franchitti 27 Alpine D H F 9 204.395 199 0 0 Running $53,280 26
8 Kosuke Matsuura 55 Panasonic ARTA G H F 4 205.629 199 0 0 Running $51,920 24
9 Scott Sharp 8 Delphi D T F 12 203.867 199 1 2 Running $46,420 22
10 Tora Takagi 12 Pioneer Mo Nunn Racing D T F 22 195.054 199 0 0 Running $50,400 20
11 Roger Yasukawa 16 Sammy G H F 13 203.863 198 0 0 Running $43,380 19
12 Alex Barron 51 Red Bull Cheever Racing D C F 22 199.835 196 0 0 Running $42,020 18
13 Tomas Scheckter 4 Pennzoil Panther D C F 16 202.952 184 0 0 Running $46,240 17
14 Bryan Herta 7 XM Satellite Radio D H F 11 204.015 183 0 0 Radiator $44,560 16
15 A.J. Foyt IV 14 Conseco/ A.J. Foyt Racing D T F 17 202.055 169 0 0 Running $37,700 15
16 Mark Taylor 2 Menards/ Johns Manville Racing D C F 14 203.787 167 0 0 Accident $36,340 14
17 Vitor Meira 17 Rahal-Letterman BEA Systems G H F 8 204.631 166 0 0 Clutch $34,820 13
18 Adrian Fernandez 5 Quaker State Telmex Tecate G H F 18 201.649 153 0 0 Engine $34,820 12
19 Sam Hornish Jr. 6 Marlboro Team Penske D T F 7 204.890 87 0 0 Accident $33,380 12
20 Greg Ray 13 Renovac G H F 2 205.722 55 0 0 Suspension $37,520 12
21 Robbie Buhl 24 Team Purex/ Dreyer & Reinbold D C F 21 195.358 38 0 0 Handling $32,020 12
22 Ed Carpenter 52 Red Bull Cheever Racing D C F 20 195.454 38 0 0 Mechanical $32,020 12



Next up - the Indianapolis 500...

[rustyfan]

Some side-notes;

* Chevrolet had a rough day

* Great to see that there were a lot less accidents than last year - I haven't found any information on them yet, but since neither Sam Hornish Jr. nor Mark Taylor are mentioned in the different race stories online, I'm assuming they walked away unhurt (which is great)

* Kudos to Matsuuda for a good showing - this guy could very well be better at this roundy-round thing than I initially thought

* Great job by the Ganassi team mates, for various reasons... Manning after having had a slightly shakey start to the season and Dixon for overcoming that hairline fracture to the ankle

Can't wait to see the 15 minutes of race coverage I'll get on (*******') Tuesday


[Edit]

Finally found the trackside report from the race, available here.

Notes about the two crashes;

Lap 87: YELLOW: #55 Matsuura's right rear makes contact with the left front of #6 Hornish. Hornish makes contact with wall in Turn 1. There is heavy damage to the right side of the car. Hornish climbs from the car without assistance from the IRL Delphi Safety Team.

Lap 90: #55 Matsuura to pits for four tires and fuel. Right-rear tire was flat. Crew for #17 Meira reports he has no radio contact. #3 Castroneves to pits for four tires and fuel.

..//..

SAM HORNISH JR. (No. 6 Marlboro Team Penske Dallara/Toyota/Firestone): "I just went in the corner, and there were too many cars in the same spot at the same time. The car in front of me slammed on its brakes, and the car beside me ran over the corner of my car and pushed me straight into the wall."

Lap 168: YELLOW: #2 Taylor makes contact with the wall in Turn 2. The car continues along the wall into Turn 3. There is damage to right side of the car. Taylor climbs from the car without assistance.

MARK TAYLOR (No. 2 Menards/Johns Manville Racing Dallara/Chevrolet/Firestone): "We had a great car, and we were running well all the way through. It is real dusty out there, so you had to make sure you stayed on that line. With that wind picking up, the car was going off a bit more, a little bit quicker, at the end of a run. I can't remember who it was who went down inside of me into (Turn) 1 and just made me go up a bit higher, but once you get into that dirt you just can't get it back, and you end up hitting the wall. It was a little brush, but it cost us a good finish. I am a bit disappointed."

[marcus]

Dan was the man today for sure , 10 minutes before the start of the race I was called out urgenly so had to stick a tape in and have just finished watching it.

fairly ordinary race because Wheldon basically ran away with it but sure was a fantastic effort by him.
Kanaan is showing his consistency w3hich will count for big things for him later in the year and good stratergy by Penske to get helio up there.

I dunno what telecast other countries get but here in Australia we get coverage through ESPN International and it is quite simply the worst commentary I have ever heard in my entire life.
Larry Rice calls the race with some other guy (I dunno who he is) and they simply dont know what they are talking about at all.
For the entire race they claimed that it was Vitor miera who collided with Sam hornish when in fact it was Matsuura , it got me so damm angry I almost turned it off.

so for Indy im going to watch it with no sound at all because the pictures were still pretty good.

I was pretty dissapointed for greg ray after his excellent qualifying it all went pair shaped for him after contact with Miera (and it was actually Miera this time )

But my impressions are that just about all the big players are up front or pretty close to it which is gonna make Indy sensational.

[marcus]

Rustyfan you didnt actually see the race then ?

If you didnt I can tell you that both Hornish and taylor are perfectly OK and both walked away from what was really minor contact , Sam's was a bit harder than Mark's but considering last years crashes they were very minor.

[BootsOntheSide]

Great stuff from Dan there, nice to see him taking the win. Is he now a serious championship challenger?

Once again Penske showed their class on raceday, whereas a lot of the guys who qualified unexpectedly well seemed ot fall back. It's a shame Greg's car gave up though.

Good that there were only 2 crashes, and no one was hurt. Long may it continue.

[rustyfan]

Originally posted by marcus
Rustyfan you didnt actually see the race then ?

If you didnt I can tell you that both Hornish and taylor are perfectly OK and both walked away from what was really minor contact , Sam's was a bit harder than Mark's but considering last years crashes they were very minor.

No, but as seen above, I found the info about the same time you made your initial post - thanks anyway though

[GP Racer]

Well, the race was over at 2AM here, so I was in no shape to post until now, although its only 8AM, I may still not be in shape! But here goes!

Good race, pretty clean to. Great job by Dan Wheldon! Not only for being the first British IRL winner,(I was surprised to hear that!) but also taking the win for Honda on their home track.

Good job by Helio, for somehow getting to third,(and giving me 5 points in the fantasy game!) after a dismal first half.

Tough break for Greg Rays understaffed, and underbudgeted team. He'll be back though. Also, Fernandez, Buhl, and Carpenter were never really in it at all. Will AJ ever get it together? Is Mark Taylor in over his head?

This is not the first time Matsurra has put somebody into the wall(Hornish). He's going to get some reputation!

Kudos to ESPN2! A full 2 1/2 hrs of coverage, with a pre race and a post race! Whoa!(sorry rusty...)

All-in-all, a pretty good night!

[rush1]

The Japanese crowd went bonkers after the race. There were quite a few honda fan in attendence. Mark Taylor had a good run going but put it into the wall at the end. Two crashes in a row for Hornish. But this one was not his fault. Darren Manning had a good run. The IRL usually doesn't produce such dominating performances as Wheldons. Poll position, most laps lead and victory. Very impressive.

[Down F0rce]

WELL DONE DAN!!!!!!!!!!!

Just couln't touch him this race. Fantastic

[Kicking-back]

Originally posted by GP Racer
Is Mark Taylor in over his head?

No

[chris42]

Go Dan! (and Darren and Mark!)... Anyone for a Brit 1,2,3 at Indy???

[MLM]

Actually, chris42, it might be an AGR 1,2,3@ Indy.
Man, that team looks VERY strong going into May....Mikey might just win (albeit, as a car owner...but a win by any other name smells just as sweet )
Chevy needs to really get their act together.
So does Panther (dang the rotten luck for Tomas and Mark! )

I just came from Track Forum. People are just whining, b****ing, complaining about the race and the IRL. Geez, if these people don't like, then don't watch it and shut the heck up, IMO!
It's nice to come here and see some positive comments.

I don't know how I did it, but I managed to stay up and watch the whole race (and like GP said, the broadcast wasn't over until 2 AM, EDT! ). I'm glad I did but "nap time" is coming up for me soon.

[Down F0rce]

Well this by far the better forum Actully, I honestly have yet to find a better place to talk about IndyCars than this place. Which is very lucky, as I happen to be a member of staff

I think Penske should still be kept an eye on. Not sure where they've been te last couple of races, but they must never be discounted at the Brickyard.

[GP Racer]

Originally posted by rush1
The Japanese crowd went bonkers after the race. There were quite a few honda fan in attendence. Mark Taylor had a good run going but put it into the wall at the end. Two crashes in a row for Hornish. But this one was not his fault. Darren Manning had a good run. The IRL usually doesn't produce such dominating performances as Wheldons. Poll position, most laps lead and victory. Very impressive.

Your right rush, those Japanese fans were going crazy at the end, and it never let up. You could easily hear them on the TV. They really are into the IRL.

From what I hear, the victory celebration goes on for hours, and the winner will be doing non-stop PR work for a week. Good for Dan and Honda!

[marcus]

I think Taylor proved he can run with the leaders and quite well , so far this year i hadnt been impressed but Motegi changed my mind on him , I think he did a very good job.
just a bit of bad luck caught him out when takagi passed him and it by no means Takagi's fault it was simply wrong place wrong time for taylor.

I do hope he gets a result soon though.

[N I Tram]

It wasn't the ebst race you'll ever see, and the three excellent bike race sover the weekend really put it in the shade, but I've seen worse. I'm happy that Dan got the win, and AGR's early seaosn form is very promising - hopefully they and Honda can keep it up.

Matsuura's mistakes so fa have been worrying. Being fast on ovals is one thing (he clearly is) but poor racecraft like that just makes you a danger. He's similar to Tomas Scheckter in his rookie days - maybe he can improve as much.

[climb]

At least Tomas performed way better from the very beginning.

[N I Tram]

I'd say qualifying fourth in your third race, with all the pressure of racing at home, represents a competitive effort, especially as he has no team-mate as such, and the field is much stronger now.