Giorgio Pantano Replaces Charlie Kimball At Mid-Ohio

Ex-Formula 1 driver Giorgio Pantano will replace the injured Charlie Kimball at this weekend’s Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio, after the American driver suffered a fracture to the fifth metacarpal in his right hand during testing at the Mid-Ohio road course last week. Pantano last raced in IndyCar last season, for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing.

After the incident, it was initially thought that Charlie Kimball would still be able to race this weekend. However, after further evaluation in Indianapolis it was decided that the 27-year-old would not be ready to return for the race. This means Italian driver Giorgio Pantano will make yet another return to the IndyCar Series, racing for the second time in his IndyCar career for Chip Ganassi Racing.

Giorgio Pantano made his IndyCar debut back in 2005 for Chip Ganassi Racing, after a disappointing season in Formula 1 with Jordan. The Italian driver competed in only two races towards the end of the season, with a best finish of 4th at the Watkins Glen Indy Grand Prix. Pantano then made a return to the Series towards the end of last season, substituting for the injured Justin Wilson and only managing a best finish of 16th at Twin Ring Motegi.

“It’s a tremendous opportunity to be rejoining Chip Ganassi Racing and the IZOD IndyCar Series this weekend at Mid-Ohio,” explained Giorgio Pantano. “You never want to have something happen to another driver and I wish Charlie a quick recovery. Nonetheless, the opportunity is here and I am looking forward to working with the team again and making the best of it.”

Although Charlie Kimball is frustrated to be missing out on the race at Mid-Ohio, the American driver will still travel to the event to help support Giorgio Pantano and his team. Kimball recorded his career-best finish earlier this season, with 2nd at the Honda Indy of Toronto. He is confident of making a return behind the wheel once the IndyCar Series arrives at Sonoma later this month, for round 13 of the Championship.

“I’m very disappointed to miss out on the Mid-Ohio race weekend,” said Charlie Kimball. “We had such a good race there last year and I was really looking forward to another shot at the podium. However, I trust the medical professionals at IndyCar, and we’re making sure I’m back to 100 percent for Sonoma.”

This is the first time Charlie Kimball has broken a bone or missed a race due to an injury, and will start an intense therapy program next week as the American driver gears up for a return to the Series at Sonoma.

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Charlie Kimball Injured During Testing Accident

Charlie Kimball has been diagnosed with a fracture of the fifth metacarpal of his right hand, after what has been described as a “freak” accident during testing for the next round of the IZOD IndyCar Series at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. The incident occurred on Thursday, after Kimball lightly spun into the barriers.

Upon making contact with the tyre barriers which line the road course, it is believed the knock against the barrier reversed the steering wheel. As this happened, Charlie Kimball’s hand made contact with the steering wheel as it snapped back upon collision, even though the 27-year-old withdrew his hands from the steering wheel. This kind of reaction from the steering wheel is common in most forms of motor sport during an incident, with drivers usually always taking their hands off the steering wheel to avoid such an injury.

“He spun off the racetrack, and when he took off his hands off the steering wheel, the knock against the tyre barrier reversed the steering wheel, and since [the wheel is] basically square, one of the corners hit the back of his hand when it snapped back,” explained Ganassi Racing General Manager Mike Hull. “It wasn’t a big off – more of a freak incident than anything.”

Charlie Kimball was naturally sent straight to the nearby MedCentral hospital in Mansfield Ohio, although the injury which Kimball has sustained is not expected to stop him racing next time out at Mid-Ohio on August 5th. The American driver, who was born in Chertsey in England, will be re-evaluated by an Indianapolis specialist on Friday.

“Novo Nordisk Chip Ganassi Racing driver Charlie Kimball was treated for a fracture of the fifth metacarpal of his right hand at MedCentral Hospital in Mansfield, Ohio, after being involved in an incident during a team test July 26 at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course,” confirmed IndyCar’s medical director, Dr. Michael Olinger. “Kimball will be re-evaluated by an Indianapolis-based specialist on July 27.”

As the IZOD IndyCar Series enters its closing stages of the season, Charlie Kimball currently sits 14th in the Drivers’ Championship with 216 points scored. The American driver scored his career best result of 2nd at the Honda Indy of Toronto this season, just behind eventual race winner Ryan-Hunter Reay.

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Ryan Hunter-Reay Completes His Hat-Trick With Victory At Toronto

Ryan Hunter-Reay has completed a hat-trick of victories with a dominating drive at the Honda Indy of Toronto, a win that has enabled the American to take the lead in the Drivers’ Championship. Charlie Kimball came home 2nd, with Mike Conway 3rd after an incident filled final few laps.

At the start Dario Franchitti controlled proceedings at the front, as his fellow countryman Justin Wilson overtook Will Power for 2nd. However, the Aussie quickly retook 2nd place on the fourth lap. On lap 6, Will Power breezed around Franchitti into turn 3, with the return to road and street courses inevitably favoring the Penske driver.

Simona de Silvestro’s miserable season continued, as the Lotus-powered driver retired once again. Scott Dixon became the first big name to drop out of the race, with suspected engine issues on lap 8. Tony Kanaan and local hero James Hinchcliffe made contact on the exit of turn 3, as the drivers raced perilously close in the opening laps.

By lap 16, drivers up and down the order began making their first pit stops. Former ChampCar and Formula 1 driver Sebastien Bourdais progressed to 3rd place, passing Wilson on lap 18. Charlie Kimball was nearly forced into retirement on lap 19, as the American driver made light contact with Graham Rahal and ran straight on at turn 3. Luckily for Kimball, he was able to rejoin without any damage or the need for a caution period.

The first caution period of the day was caused on lap 24, when Graham Rahal ran wide a turn 1 and slammed into the wall. This incident ended the American’s race, and resulted in Will Power’s lead being reduced to zero as the safety car took control of the pack. In traditional IndyCar fashion, the majority of the field opted to pit under safety car conditions, with the top seven drivers all peeling off into pit road. This promoted Simon Pagenaud into the lead, as Franchitti endured a frustratingly slow stop as the Scot failed to stop close enough to his pit crew. This meant his mechanics had to manually maneuver him closer to the wall, so as to fill the car up with fuel.

On lap 28 Simon Pagenaud led the pack away, as local hero James Hinchcliffe officially retired with engine trouble. The Frenchman out in front enjoyed several blisteringly quick laps in the lead, before the rookie eventually peeled off into the pits for his first scheduled pit stop on lap 50. This handed the lead to Ryan Hunter-Reay, who looked in fine form out on track.

Ryan Hunter-Reay’s reign at the top lasted until only lap 55, when the Texas-born driver made his second pit stop. JR Hildebrand assumed the lead, as Championship leader Will Power was seen limping back to the pits with a damaged front wing and a front-left puncture. The Australian driver only received a new set of tyres, however he eventually returned to the pits for a new nose cone several laps later.

Whilst Will Power and Dario Franchitti suffered disastrously uncompetitive races, JR Hildebrand made his second stop, as Ryan Hunter-Reay assumed the lead once again. Justin Wilson suddenly slowed on track, and managed to limp back to the pits to retirement. A later replay showed that the Briton had made contact with the wall, and therefore received extensive suspension damage.

Action and excitement was in abundance out on track, as Charlie Kimball completed a stunning overtake on both Tony Kanaan and Simon Pagenaud into turn 3. This promoted Kimball to 2nd, as Hunter-Reay enjoyed over a 7 second lead at the front. However, the Andretti Autosport driver’s lead was lost when Josef Newgarden brought out the second full course caution on lap 79. The 21-year-old American ran straight on at turn 3, tapping the wall and then stalling the car for good measure.

On the restart, total carnage and confusion ensued as Sebastien Bourdais ran wide and into the wall at turn 1. Rubens Barrichello also spun at the back, as the gaggle of cars at the front approached turn 3. It was on the run down to turn 3 that the action really started, as Ryan Briscoe squeezed Dario Franchitti into the wall. The two subsequently came together, whilst on the racing line Marco Andretti stopped on track and was rammed by Simon Pagenaud and then Ed Carpenter. With the track partially blocked, the safety car returned to the track to bring the race to a safe end as Ryan Hunter-Reay recorded a hat-trick of victories and took the lead in the Drivers’ Championship.

The IZOD IndyCar Series remains in Canada, for another tight and daunting street race in two weeks time at Edmonton.

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Justin Wilson Takes Victory In Thrilling Firestone 550 At Texas

British driver Justin Wilson has taken his first IndyCar victory of the 2012 season in a tremendously riveting Firestone 550 around the daunting Texas Motor Speedway. The 33-year-old took the lead off Graham Rahal with only two laps to spare, as the American driver lightly tapped the wall throwing away his chance of victory.

At the start of the race, two drivers failed to even start the warm-up laps. Both Rubens Barrichello and Simona de Silvestro failed to start the race due to separate issues with their cars’. However, once the green flag was unfurled to signify the start of the race, Alex Tagliani stormed into the lead from pole, as Scott Dixon took 2nd place from team-mate Dario Franchitti.

After a very promising qualifying session, Franchitti was seen falling back through the pack as the Scot began to suffer greatly from handling issues. By lap 17 he was down in 7th position, and by lap 20 the Target Chip Ganassi driver opted to take to pit road to try and rectify his handling issues, thus dropping down a lap. Whilst Franchitti suffered at the back of the pack, his team-mate Scott Dixon flew past Tagliani to take the lead on lap 21, as the Canadian driver also lost several places.

The first full course caution was caused on lap 31, when Charlie Kimball lost the rear end of his Chip Ganassi car and made contact with the wall. Luckily for Kimball it was only a minor incident, however enough damage was caused to bring an end to American’s race. It traditional IndyCar style, the majority of the field pitted under caution. As Tony Kanaan suffered a frustratingly long stop, Dixon rejoined still in the lead.

As the race returned to green flag conditions, Dixon continued his dominance at the front, as Simon Pagenaud received a drive-through penalty for a blunder in the pits. However, the race wasn’t under green flag conditions for long as Takuma Sato had an unusual incident along the back straight which brought out the second full course caution of the evening on lap 65. Ryan Hunter-Reay also retired from the race on lap 67, as the American driver took to pit road with a loss of power to his Andretti Autosport car.

Once again the majority of the field took to the pits under caution, as Ryan Briscoe suffered a lengthy stop. Once again Dixon remained in the lead for the restart on lap 72, as Oriol Servia became the next retirement several laps later with fuel injector issues. As the Kiwi of Scott Dixon stormed away at the front, James Hinchcliffe and Justin Wilson began making up ground, both passing Graham Rahal on track.

As a third caution failed to materialize, the field gradually began making green flag pitstops on lap 112. Dixon pitted from the lead on lap 117, handing the lead down to Justin Wilson who threw caution to wind and remained out on track with a car visibly slower due to worn-out tyres. Eventually the Briton pitted on lap 125, thus allowing Scott Dixon to retake the lead.

The third caution of the day was caused when E.J. Viso pulled off to the side of the track, with a suspected mechanical issue. Once again several drivers including Dixon pitted under caution, as Hinchcliffe assumed the lead. Castroneves and Newgarden came together in the pits, which resulted in a drive-through penalty for the rookie driver.

As the race returned to green flag conditions it wasn’t long before Dixon returned to the lead, however the Kiwi began to loose momentum on lap 171 when Will Power shot into lead. With Dixon trying to make up the lost ground, the Kiwi slammed his Chip Ganassi car into the wall on lap 175 bringing out the fourth caution of the evening.

On the restart, the two Penske’s of Power and Briscoe battled side-by-side before Power made a fundamental error and blocked Kanaan causing light damage to the Brazilian’s front wing. As Kanaan pitted for a new front wing, Power was issued a drive-though penalty which therefore handed the lead down to his team-mate Ryan Briscoe.

However, on lap 199 Briscoe lost the lead to Rahal and then lost 2nd place to Wilson. As the race entered its closing laps, Wilson began to reel in leader Rahal before the American driver gifted victory to the Brit by lightly tapping the wall. This therefore caused damage to Rahal’s car, as Wilson stormed through to take his first victory since Watkins Glen in 2009. Graham Rahal amazingly managed to limp home in 2nd, with Penske’s Ryan Briscoe 3rd.

The IndyCar action continues next weekend with another Saturday oval race at Milwaukee for the legendary Milwaukee IndyFest.

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Rubens Barrichello Confident After First Test On An Oval

Former Formula 1 driver Rubens Barrichello has described his first outing on an oval track in an IndyCar as ‘truly awesome’, as the Brazilian star gears up for what will be his first Indianapolis 500 later this month.

The former Ferrari and Williams driver tested the new Dallara DW12 chassis on the 1.5-mile 24-degree Texas Motor Speedway oval, and reached speeds in excess of 200mph. Rubens Barrichello explained that it wasn’t a challenge reaching those speeds, but instead was a challenge in keeping his line and vision on the track.

“It’s different from anything I’ve tried,” Said Rubens Barrichello. “On my second run, after I broke the 200s, I was so excited. It was truly awesome. I’ve been to places in Formula 1 that you have to have the courage to take it flat to gain a hundredth [of a second]. Here, it wasn’t the case of getting flat because it’s not that difficult, but it’s keeping the line and the vision on it.”

In a day which saw Kiwi Scott Dixon top the timing sheets for Target Chip Ganassi Racing, Rubens Barrichello was avidly learning the techniques required to being competitive on a oval. 

“I told the officials to let everyone running close to me give a margin because I’m still not so comfortable running just one lane; maybe one and a half lanes,” continued the Brazilian, who will be classified as a rookie the Indy 500. “I’m not totally at peace with the car. I’m driving okay, but I’m not driving my best just yet because I’m not familiar with everything just yet. I’m definitely a newcomer and it’s an exciting challenge. I truly love this.”

Rubens Barrichello ended the day 11th fastest overall, whilst Charlie Kimball and Dario Franchitti rounded out a Ganassi top 3 behind Scott Dixon. Current IndyCar Series Championship leader Will Power ended the day 4th fastest.

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Will Power Wins Third Consecutive Race Of The Season At Sao Paulo

Australia’s Will Power has taken his third consecutive victory of the 2012 IZOD IndyCar Series in an incident filled race on the streets of Sao Paulo, finishing just under a second ahead of Ryan Hunter-Ray. Takuma Sato came home 3rd, his personal best finish of his IndyCar career to date.

The race start time was brought forward as rain threatened the event, which was postponed after only 15 laps in 2011 due to heavy rain. At the start, the field safely negotiated the first two treacherous corners as Will Power took control at the front from reigning Series Champion Dario Franchitti. James Hinchcliffe suffered a difficult opening few laps, dropping from 4th to 7th whereas Charlie Kimball took slight wing damage.

On lap 10, the first scheduled pit-stops took place as local hero Helio Castroneves pitted for Penske along with rookie Simon Pagenaud a lap later. During these opening pit-stop, both Takuma Sato and Ana Beatriz were issued penalties for speeding in the pit lane. With the Japanese driver starting from way down in 25th position, a penalty was the last thing the former F1 driver needed.

With the first quarter of the race running caution free, Will Power was still running strong in the lead as he made his first pit-stop on lap 23. Katherine Legge’s difficult season continued when on lap 22 the British driver tapped the wall, thus forcing her to limp back to the pits with a left-rear puncture.

As Power pitted, his team-mate Ryan Briscoe stuffed his Penske into the wall bringing out the first full course caution of the race. This caution last for 4 laps as the stricken Penske was removed by the marshals, and the race returned to green flag conditions on lap 27.

Heading down into the turn 1, and Dario Franchitti was unceremoniously tipped into a spin by Mike Conway. This left the reigning Champion stuck on the track, as the second full course caution was brought out to allow the marshals to tend to the stricken Scot. 

As the old saying goes in IndyCar ‘cautions breed cautions’, and that was evident during the Sao Paulo Indy as the race returned to racing conditions once again on lap 30 only for a third consecutive caution to be caused as Josef Newgarden, Simona de Silvestro, James Jakes and Charlie Kimball were involved in a pile-up at turn 3. As the carnage ensued, Tony Kanaan completed a stunning restart as he stormed passed fellow countrymen Castroneves and Barrichello.

After three consecutive cautions, the drivers’ held their breath as the race returned to green flag conditions. Miraculously it was incident free as Power led at the front, as Franchitti began a charge from behind after his early incident. By lap 43, the Scot was already back up to 6th place due to the many incidents and pit-stops during the caution periods.

The second round of pit-stops began around lap 42, with Scott Dixon eventually assuming the lead as the stops were carried out. With the Kiwi scheduled to stop once more in the race, Will Power sat comfortably in 2nd awaiting his eventual rise to the lead. This eventuality occurred on lap 63 when Dixon pitted, just as the fourth full course caution was brought out as Ed Carpenter spun and Josef Newgarden hit the wall in separate incidents’. 

On the restart, Sato surprised everyone and stormed through to 3rd, narrowly avoiding a collision with Dario Franchitti into turn 2. Unfortunately, the inevitable happened as a multi-car pile-up ensued further down the order, bringing out yet another full course caution. With the track nearly blocked, the leaders perilously made their way through the mayhem under safety car conditions next time around.

As the IndyCar fraternity held their breath once again for a clean restart, Will Power was able to fend off Ryan Hunter-Reay and complete his third consecutive win of the season. Takuma Sato came home an impressive 3rd after making up 22 positions throughout the race.

The IndyCar Series now heads home to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway for the month of May and the 96th Indy 500! 

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Dixon Holds Off Power To Win Final Japanese Indy

2003 & 2008 IndyCar World Series Champion, Scott Dixon, has held off Aussie Will Power in the final ever Japanese Indy to be held. The race was initially supposed to be held on the Twin Ring Motegi Oval, however had to take place on the street circuit that runs adjacent to the oval as it was damaged during the Earthquake earlier in the year.

The race started under controversial circumstances when the majority of the field failed to get side-by-side for the green flag, however the race was started and into Turn 1 Brazilian Penske driver, Helio Castroneves lost out as he had to take evading action and spun into the deep gravel trap. Unfortunately the track was very difficult to pass on, but that didn’t stop Ryan Briscoe who literally barged his way past rookie Charlie Kimball on Lap 7, and the two nearly came together as Kimball had to give way after an immense start getting to as high a 4th place on the opening lap!

As the laps came and went, the fight at the front between Dixon and Power ebbed and flowed as the rest of the field fought between themselves until eventually on Lap 20 rookie driver Joao Paulo De Oliveira in his first ever IndyCar race took out local hero Takuma Sato. The fans were understandably furious and a few laps later De Oliveira eventually retired due to fuel pump issues, which in turn brought out the first caution of the race. Luckily for the majority of the field, they had pitted before the caution was called, this included leaders of the race Dixon and Power. Dixon was just able to get out of the pits ahead of Power, as the two nearly came to blows whilst exiting the pit lane.

On Lap 25 the caution was brought to an end when the green flag came out and straight away another caution was needed as Franchitti got all heated heading into Turn 1 and touched Ryan Briscoe who in turn touched Graham Rahal who spun, forcing Charlie Kimball to take avoiding action through the gravel trap. Surprisingly team owner, Chip Ganassi, was openly furious with Franchitti who had practically taken out three Ganassi owned cars (Franchitti, Rahal and Kimball) however all cars were undamaged and able to continue. This did force, however, Franchitti, Briscoe and Rahal to all pit for checkups, and even forced Franchitti to change his front wing, loosing him valuable ground on the track. Eventually, IZOD IndyCar officials saw it right to penalize Franchitti for causing an avoidable incident and forced him to be moved to the back of the pack, which is where he was anyway. This move by the officials sparked controversy in pit road as it was believed as he was already at the back of the pack and this sort of penalty wasn’t actually a valid penalty, however on Lap 29 the green flag flew as the drivers got back up to racing speeds without any more news about Franchitti.

On Lap 43 the second round of pits stops started to begin, when Oriol Servia, James Jakes and Dario Franchitti all pitted at once, and Jakes lost out immensely when his pit stop was very slow and he rejoined the track behind Franchitti and in 23rd place after coming into the pits from 4th! A lap later Will Power pitted for the option red tyres and a lap later leader Dixon pitted for the option reds also, and rejoined just in front of Power.

For the next few laps a train of cars started to emerge in the middle of the pack, and it all came to a head when, on Lap 58, ChampCar Super Star Sebastien Bourdais collided with Ryan Hunter-Reay, and unfortunately Hunter-Reay beached the car in the gravel forcing a 3rd Full Course Caution. Amazingly Bourdais escaped receiving a penalty, which goes to show the inconsistency of IndyCar officials as Franchitti pulled off the same maneuver and got penalized! Luckily for Hunter-Reay he was restarted by officials and was able to trundle back to the pits for an inspection by the team before rejoining at the back of the field.

With 4 Laps to go it all looked like we were ready to go green, that was until the cars failed to get side-by-side for the restart, and some cars even got 3 abreast heading into Turn 1. This caused the officials to wave them through for 1 more lap under caution. The next time round was a different story as the majority of the field were able to get side-by-side and the green flag flew, and the carnage ensued as the cars piled into Turn 1 when both Lotus cars of Takuma Sato and EJ Viso came together and Ryan Briscoe ran wide onto the gravel and then into Turn 3 Vitor Meira beached his A.J. Foyt Enterprises car in the gravel.

However all this was luckily kept under local cautions and Scott Dixon was able to come home unhindered in the closing laps to take his 27th career victory with now-World Championship leader Will Power coming home 2nd and Marco Andretti coming home 3rd. Dario Franchitti was able to savor 9th after his shenanigans earlier in the race.

This now poses us with an enticing spectacle with only two races to go and them all being raced on Ovals! Dario Franchitti has so far been the king of the ovals, and he needs to be to be able to beat the unstoppable Will Power!