Barber Motorsports Park Race Thread

[DanicaFan]

http://i233.photobucket.com/albums/ee236/DanicaRules/higpa-final_medium.jpg

Race 2 of 16

Race - Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama

Location - Barber Motorsports Park, Birmingham, AL

Date - Sunday, April 1st

Time & TV Schedule - Pre-Race Show - 2:00PM , Green Flag -2:45PM - NBC Sports Network

Course Type - 2.38 Mile Road Course

Distance - 90 Laps / 214.2 Miles

Practice Sessions -

Friday, March 30th -1:30-2:00pm Group A & 2:00-2:30pm Group B / 4:30-5:30pm Eastern
Saturday, March 31st - 9:00AM-9:20AM Eastern
Sunday, April 1st - 9:40 -10:10am Eastern- Warm-UP

Qualifications - Saturday, March 31st - 10:40am-11:55am Eastern

2011 Pole Sitter -#12 Will Power - 1:11.4546 / 115.878 MPH

2011 Winner - #12 Will Power

**Note - All times listed in Eastern Time, Alabama is 1 hour behind (CDT) Time.

[DanicaFan]

http://i233.photobucket.com/albums/ee236/DanicaRules/alabamarace.jpg

[FormerFF]

This will be my first visit to Barber, and my first visit to an Indycar sanctioned race. Anyone else going?

[heliocastroneves#3]

Definitely my favorite race from the permanent road courses which are on the schedule this year. It's a great track, personally I like Mid-Ohio and Infineon more but this track provides better racing. I think we're gonna see another enjoyable race here. :) St. Petersburg was good, but this one is gonna be even better!

[FIAT1]

l hope that Josef and Graham do well. Bring Road America back so we can enjoy some real speed.

[harvick#1]

Bring Road America back so we can enjoy some real speed.

and Mazda Raceway at Laguna Seca

[00steven]

Yes to RA and Laguna!

[call_me_andrew]

If there's a prettier looking track than Barber, I don't want to know about it.

[F1boat]

After round 1 I think that Team Penske will be very tough to beat. Honestly, I expect Power to win, although I prefer Helio Castroneves. I hope that Dario will do better as well and why not a good result for Rubens?

[DanicaFan]

Entry List...

http://i233.photobucket.com/albums/ee236/DanicaRules/barberlist.jpg

[DanicaFan]

Piit Lane Assignments..

http://i233.photobucket.com/albums/ee236/DanicaRules/barberpits.jpg

[DanicaFan]

Practice Groups for Friday, March 30th.

http://i233.photobucket.com/albums/ee236/DanicaRules/barberpracticegroups.jpg

[DanicaFan]

Virtual Lap of Barber Motorsports Park..

Ea6hnyWiyEE

[F1boat]

Thanks, Danica Fan!

[DanicaFan]

Thanks, Danica Fan!

You are welcome. I like all the info in one place to read. Makes it easy.

[FIAT1]

You are welcome. I like all the info in one place to read. Makes it easy.

..as much hard time we give you with Danica, I would like to thank you for the feedback. Cool!

[harvick#1]

If there's a prettier looking track than Barber, I don't want to know about it.

saying for USA or the world?

[call_me_andrew]

saying for USA or the world?

World. Have you seen the fugly tracks F1 is going to these days?

[jimispeed]

On the virtual lap video, the angle view from 37 to 41 seconds makes the car look a little like the delta wing. Definitely has some delta wing design cues.

[DanicaFan]

..as much hard time we give you with Danica, I would like to thank you for the feedback. Cool!

You are welcome. I truly enjoy doing these threads.

[F1boat]

DanicaFan, who do you think will win the race? This is a question for all, of course :)

[FormerFF]

It's hard to argue against Will Power for any road or street race. That is, of course, if he doesn't get set on a duff race strategy like what happened in St. Pete. Note to team Penske: If you have the fastest car, you don't need an odd strategy!

[F1boat]

Yes, Power seems to be very fast on a road course, but IMO he is a bit of a choker and if Helio is back on form, nobody knows what will happen. Unfortunately for me Dario is not so fast on road courses or maybe team Target favors ovals. I dunno.

[DanicaFan]

DanicaFan, who do you think will win the race? This is a question for all, of course :)

Well, Im going to have say Dario Franchitti.

[heliocastroneves#3]

World. Have you seen the fugly tracks F1 is going to these days?

Yeah, the F1 tracks are for.... Drivers who always have to cry about something. That's why I hope IndyCar stays away from Circuit of the Americas. C'mon, in IndyCar we don't know runoff areas on a permanent road course!


Thanks for the good topic DanicaFan, by the way. :)

[garyshell]

C'mon, in IndyCar we don't know runoff areas on a permanent road course!

Sure we do. MidOhio has 'em as do others, or are you talking about PAVED runoffs?

Gary

[FIAT1]

[quote="heliocastroneves#3"]Yeah, the F1 tracks are for.... Drivers who always have to cry about something. That's why I hope IndyCar stays away from Circuit of the Americas. C'mon, in IndyCar we don't know runoff areas on a permanent road course!


I'm sure after 1994 F1 season that runoff areas are welcome in any series. F1 drivers crying for safety ,so we don't have to cry when things go wrong. Michael Andretti is very alive today because we have them in Ohio.

[DanicaFan]

Yeah, the F1 tracks are for.... Drivers who always have to cry about something. That's why I hope IndyCar stays away from Circuit of the Americas. C'mon, in IndyCar we don't know runoff areas on a permanent road course!


Thanks for the good topic DanicaFan, by the way. :)

You are quite welcome.

[DanicaFan]

Spotter Guide..

http://i233.photobucket.com/albums/ee236/DanicaRules/barberspotterguide.jpg

[Anubis]

I'm sure after 1994 F1 season that runoff areas are welcome in any series. F1 drivers crying for safety ,so we don't have to cry when things go wrong. Michael Andretti is very alive today because we have them in Ohio.

As indeed is Pedro Lamy, for those who remember his flight at the same corner.

[garyshell]

C'mon, in IndyCar we don't know runoff areas on a permanent road course!


Michael Andretti is very alive today because we have them in Ohio.

Funny, that was EXACTLY the incident I was thinking of when I replied that MidOhio has runoffs. I sat there with my chin on the ground when I saw that all take place in front of me.

Gary

[Anubis]

Parker Johnstone at Road America is the other one that springs immediately to mind.

[F1boat]

Well, Im going to have say Dario Franchitti.

Haha, I hope that you are right, I am big fan of Dario!
heliocastroneves#3, I agree about modern F1 tracks (Bahrain, China), but I think that the classic ones are still cool. My favorite tracks however are in the BTCC.

[DanicaFan]

Haha, I hope that you are right, I am big fan of Dario!
heliocastroneves#3, I agree about modern F1 tracks (Bahrain, China), but I think that the classic ones are still cool. My favorite tracks however are in the BTCC.

I have been wrong before though...lol I picked Scott Dixon last week and he finished 2nd so maybe this week I can get it right.

[FIAT1]

Josef Newgarden, IndyCar driver from Nashville, grew up loving open-wheels | al.com (http://www.al.com/sports/index.ssf/2012/03/josef_newgarden_indycar_driver.html)


I hope he does well. Go Josef and Graham! Fast and safe race!

[DanicaFan]

Practice 1 Results..

http://i233.photobucket.com/albums/ee236/DanicaRules/barberpractice1-1.jpg

[DanicaFan]

Practice 2 was shortened and rain hampered so not all driver went out. Below are the results of Practice 2..

http://i233.photobucket.com/albums/ee236/DanicaRules/barberpractice2-1.jpg

[DanicaFan]

Sebastian Saavedra just won the pole for the Indy Lights race at Barber.

[DanicaFan]

1st group should be easy for the best drivers. Group 2 is tough..

Group 1 are..

#3 Helio Castroneves
#98 Alex Tagliani
#4 JR Hildebrand
#5 EJ Viso
#6 Katherine Legge
#7 Sebastien Bourdais
#14 Mike Conway
#18 Justin Wilson
#26 Marco Andretti
#38 Graham Rahal
#67 Josef Newgarden
#77 Simon Pagenaud
#78 Simona De Silvestro

[DanicaFan]

Group 2 is stacked!

#2 Ryan Briscoe
#8 Rubens Barrichello
#9 Scott Dixon
#10 Dario Franchitti
#11 Tony Kanaan
#12 Will Power
#15 Takuma Sato
#19 James Jakes
#20 Ed Carpenter
#22 Oriol Servia
#27 James Hinchcliffe
#28 Ryan Hunter-Reay
#83 Charlie Kimball

[DanicaFan]

The 6 moving on from Group 1 are..

#14 Mike Conway
#38 Graham Rahal
#3 Helio Castroneves
#77 Simon Pagenaud
#5 EJ Viso
#4 JR Hildebrand

[DanicaFan]

The 6 moving on from Group 2 are...

1. #12 Will Power
2. #9 Scott Dixon
3. #27 James Hinchcliffe
4. #28 Ryan Hunter-Reay
5. #11 Tony Kanaan
6. #2 Ryan Briscoe

[DanicaFan]

I bet all the Lotus drivers are wanting to trade thier engines in for a Chevy....lol

[DanicaFan]

The Firestone Fast 6 are..

#3 Helio Castroneves
#27 James Hinchcliffe
#4 JR Hildebrand
#14 Mike Conway
#11 Tony Kanaan
#9 Scott Dixon

[DanicaFan]

Congrats to Helio Castroneves for winning the pole!

[DanicaFan]

Here is the starting line-up..

1. #3 Helio Castroneves
2. #27 James Hinchcliffe
3. #9 Scott Dixon
4. #14 Mike Conway
5. #4 JR Hildebrand
6. #11 Tony Kanaan
7. #5 EJ Viso
8. #38 Graham Rahal
9. #12 Will Power
10. #77 Simon Pagenaud
11. #28 Ryan Hunter-Reay
12. #2 Ryan Briscoe
13. #26 Marco Andretti
14. #8 Rubens Barrichello
15. #67 Josef Newgarden
16. #15 Takuma Sato
17. #7 Sebastien Bourdais
18. #10 Dario Franchitti
19. #18 Justin Wilson
20. #19 James Jakes
21. #78 Simona De Silvestro
22. #83 Charlie Kimball
23. #98 Alex Tagliani
24. #20 Ed Carpenter
25. #6 Katherine Legge
26. #22 Oriol Servia

[garyshell]

That red flag was pretty damn quick, especially given that Ryan's car was out of harm's way and only two or the cars need to cross the line. Will got robbed.

Gary

[FIAT1]

That red flag was pretty damn quick, especially given that Ryan's car was out of harm's way and only two or the cars need to cross the line. Will got robbed.

Gary

Agree,they should let him finish a lap Congrats to Helio and Hinch(nice to see green car up front) it will be interesting race ,many fast guys in the back.

[00steven]

What the hells with Dario so far?

[garyshell]

What the hells with Dario so far?

He said it was a lack of balance and virtually no practice due to the rain yesterday.

Gary

[heliocastroneves#3]

I'm a little concerned about Dario honestly because in St. Pete he wasn't very quick either. Despite he could have had a very good result, if that last yellow didn't come out.

Congratulations Hélio, and Hinchcliffe; Can you take your first win for Andretti Autosport, after barely two races? The former driver of the GoDaddy car, did it in 20 starts for Andretti Autosport. I really hope Hinchcliffe can beat that. It might be a little early to say anyway, but it might be finally Hélio's year. :)

[Nikki Katz]

But everyone had the same lack of practice that Franchitti did, and most of them didn't qualify behind one of the Lotuses. I hope this is just a blip and he gets used to the car soon!

[F1boat]

But everyone had the same lack of practice that Franchitti did, and most of them didn't qualify behind one of the Lotuses. I hope this is just a blip and he gets used to the car soon!

I hope so too :(

[FIAT1]

Looking in to quality of teams and cars Sebastien is doing magic in my opinion.

[00steven]

Watch out for Hinch today.

[Marbles]

Looking forward to the race today. It would be loverly to see Hinch get a win... or Rahal, Wilson, Sato etc. Pretty much anyone but the usual suspects. However, I'd take a great race over any specific driver taking the win.


Anybody see that Grand Am DP come to a sudden stop yesterday when it's nose got stuck in the turf truffle hunting? Ouch!

[steveaki13]

Wow Sato is moving up the field upto 12th from 16th.

[gm99]

Dixon running away with it at the moment.
Power seems to have the fastest car, though, but can't get past Rahal.

[Mad_Hatter]

A+ race coverage and A+ racing. That's all anyone can ask for really.

[Anubis]

Still don't really like him, but couldn't help but be impressed with Bourdais today. And nice finish for Rubens as well :)

[FIAT1]

Congrats to all drivers and Indycar for amazing race . Fantastic! Beautiful little track, passing , commentary thru the field twice, Sebastien again, Will from 9 to 1st, not to many yellows, officiating ,TV ,I could go on and on. I have enjoyed this race so much I forgot obout bumpers. Great stuff! What a race!!!

[DBell]

Nice race. So much better than St Pete. Drivers driving and racing hard, attacking each other. This is much better to me than seeing who can get the best fuel mileage.

Drivers of the race for me is Power and Bourdais. Really terrific driving from both.

Puzzlement of the race: why are the Andretti cars so inconsistent and why is Helio faster on black tires than red? At times the Andretti cars were flying and at other times they were going backward. All three drivers had this issue at some point in the race and their pit stops didn't help. Curious that Helio couldn't pick it up with the red tires. He better hope this is a freak weekend or he better figure it out as it will cost him throughout the year. I think it cost him a chance at the win today. Back to back stints with the blacks is not ideal.

[gm99]

Quite entertaining race today.
Great pit strategy and racing for Power to win it from P9.
Pagenaud, Bourdais and Barrichello did well, too.

Briscoe was strangely off the pace today, escpecially compared to his team-mates who finished in first and third.
Franchitti still seems to be struggeling to get to terms with the new car as well.

[Mad_Hatter]

The black magic is in how the setup interacts with the tires.

Marco went "too conservative" for quals and they overcompensated in race setup. Helio's setup was optimal on the blacks. Why not double stint if that's where you perform better?

On a side note, there were a lot of large marbles on the track today. Even though the tires were racy, the question of what one would do to a driver's head crossed my mind...

[Nikki Katz]

Yeah, that was a much better race, really good fun.

How much better was the commentary on this network than the one last week???

I'm all for the proposal they mentioned to not close the pits as soon as a yellow's thrown. While they should be making sure that drivers don't whizz through the area where the accident is, closing the pits doesn't really do anything other than screw up the race of anyone that hasn't pitted yet. They should only really close the pits when the incident is in the pits - yet last week the pitlane was blocked but they opened it anyway!

Yeah, there's been a lot said about Franchitti's sudden lack of form, but I completely agree that Briscoe's been if anything worse today. Where was he while his teammates were on the podium? 16th???

[champcarray]

Thank you, NBC. The coverage and camera work are so much better than ABC's. Very enjoyable. And thank you, drivers, for racing, racing, racing. Awesome slicing and dicing!

[Marbles]

This was so impressive. Drivers (in any series) suddenly able to grasp the "one move" rule. Passing. Clean racing. Spare parts in short supply? Great coverage from the booth and even better coverage from the director! Coverage of the battles from fifth to fifteenth was bang on. I want to see racing!


thanks...

[Jag_Warrior]

I can't add anything to what's already been said. But as someone who used to take pride in beating the IRL with any stick I could find, after watching this action packed race, I'm now glad to say those days are behind me. I'll refer to this series as the "Indy Car Series" from now on (or ICS), and I'm as happy as anyone to bury the "IRL" in the past. Onion gum, no more.

Great day of racing! Great job all around! And I've even set my Tivo for an IR... Indy Car Series season pass! :) :up:

[FormerFF]

First, who was it who said there would be no passing?

This was my first visit to Barber. If you look at the track diagram it looks like a scaled up Sprint Kart track. What the track diagram doesn't show you is the elevation changes, which makes it much more technical than it appears to be on paper. Unlike any other track I've visited, you sit outside of the track and look towards the inside. Because of the gravel traps, that means you're never really close to the cars, it's a little more of a high level view. Also. there are lots of trees, so you're not going to see too much of the track at any one time. Fortunately there are plenty of matrix boards where you can see the rest of the action. As far as the track character goes, the configurate is a little more like some of the more club level circuits I've been to such as Roebling Road or Blackhawk Farms, a little on the narrow side and twisty with lots of sweeping turns. It's also the only track I've seen that's been landscaped.

In person, the cars are not so sports car-ish looking as they are on TV. The sound is maybe a little throatier than the Cosworth turbo V8s that Champ Car used, but they're still very turbo sounding and not too loud. I had earplugs in for the Lights race, but took them out for the Indycars. Say what you will about the appearance of the cars, the wider sidepods and barge boards kept the cars from locking wheels. What did we go, like 70 laps between the first and second yellows? The configuration of the cars allows tight racing without someone winding up in the barriers. How do they look on track? The fast guys make them look fast, the not so fast guys and girls don't. As it should be.

Instead of having a track announcer, Barber played the radio feed through the track PA. At the start when Tags's car stopped on track, they first misidentified it as Rubens Barrichello, then "corrected" themselves by announcing it was Alex Zanardi! Oy...

Will Power started out on blacks, and didn't mover forward very quickly. Race strategy got him forward and pure pace kept him there. I suppose if you were watching the TV feed and if they'd stayed on the leader all day long, the race wouldn't have seemed all that interesting, but there sure was a lot of stuff going on in positions 3 through 20. Will was the class of the field and got the deserved win, everyone else had to fight for what they got. I know there are some folks here who aren't very fond of Seabass but I think he's the second best roadracer in the series. Put him in Ryan Briscoe's car and I think he's capable of winning another championship.

I don't know if any of you have ever read Alan Johnson's "Driving In Competition". The original text is about 40 years old, but it's one of the best introductory books on the subject. In it, Alan divides corners into three categories depending on where they are relative to the straights on the track. Barber has all of the three types and some that take on one type in the beginning of the turn and another type on exit. It also has a couple of turns where the best you can do is to not try to go too fast as you need to worry more about the turns before and after. Most of the drivers recognized it, some better than others. Kat Legge and Ed looked a bit lost out there. There were a few laps where Ed, while a lap down, was holding up Simon Pagenaud. That was embarrassing.

I have no frame of reference to judge how big the crowd was there. There is one section where there are lots of people sitting under the trees, and I suspect you'd not notice them on the TV screen. I only saw one or two people wearing Indycar specific stuff. On the way out, I was talking to someone who was formerly a NASCAR fan, but had lost interest after Dale Earnhardt was killed. He liked what he saw and was planning on coming back next year. Also, when I was on my home, when I got to the interstate, I was the only one heading East towards Atlanta, everyone else went towards Birmingham. Alabama has a lot of dedicated motorsports fans, and that's who I think were most of the attendees today. My guess is that they liked what they saw and will be back. Me, I thought it was great and will be back if I can possibly do so. Next time I'm going to get there extra early so I can tour the bike museum.

[00steven]

A few thoughts:

Barber is an excellent racecourse and produced some of the best racing seen in a while, this car is a winner.

Dario is in big trouble and needs to get a grip fast.

NBC Sports showed they were far and away better than ESPN.

Sebastien Bourdais is a hell of a racer and could contend for a title if he had good equipment. His fellow Frenchman is quite good also.

Congrats to Willy P. once again showing he is the best road and street guy in Indycar and will be really tough to beat in the title.

[heliocastroneves#3]

I thought St. Petersburg was a great race, but this one was simply... Awesome, I like every permanent road course on the schedule, but this one definitely produces the best racing. However a lot of things are unknown with this new car. I have to agree with all your points 00steven. I have to say that Simon Pagenaud is an excellent driver and will win races in the future. I don't believe he drives for a bad team, but it's not a winning team either. Thumbs up to him!

[Chris R]

I agree with all the sentiments echoed here - AWESOME race!!!!

[DanicaFan]

This race was better than St. Pete. I was suprised at the amount of passing that went on. Marco was aggressive in this race, I loved it!

Here are the final results..

1. #12 Will Power
2. #9 Scott Dixon
3. #3 Helio Castroneves
4. #38 Graham Rahal
5. #77 Simon Pagenaud
6. #27 James Hinchcliffe
7. #14 Mike Conway
8. #8 Rubens Barrichello
9. #7 Sebastien Bourdais
10. #10 Dario Franchitti
11. #26 Marco Andretti
12. #28 Ryan Hunter-Reay
13. #22 Oriol Servia
14. #2 Ryan Briscoe
15. #4 JR Hildebrand
16. #19 James Jakes
17. #67 Josef Newgarden
18. #5 EJ Viso
19. #18 Justin Wilson
20. #78 Simona De Silvestro
21. #11 Tony Kanaan
22. #20 Ed Carpenter
23. #6 Katherine Legge
24. #15 Takuma Sato
25. #83 Charlie Kimball
26. #98 Alex Tagliani

[DBell]

After reading and seeing some of the after race interviews, it seems the tires Firestone brought was a key to the amount of passing that took place. Power said there was a 3 second a lap drop during a stint on the tires. I hope Firestone can keep that kind of tire performance on road courses for the year. Tires that have to be managed and have some fall off creates more interesting racing, imo.

Nice work Firestone, keep it up.

[numanoid]

First, who was it who said there would be no passing?

Well, just about everyone said that. Power was really angry on the red flag during his qualifying that put him in P9 and he said several times how hard it was to pass here. 1 passing zone the drivers said.



I suppose if you were watching the TV feed and if they'd stayed on the leader all day long, the race wouldn't have seemed all that interesting, but there sure was a lot of stuff going on in positions 3 through 20.

Actually, for most of the race they focused on the groups and the battles and not the leader. As stated many times in this thread, the coverage was amazing.


After reading and seeing some of the after race interviews, it seems the tires Firestone brought was a key to the amount of passing that took place. Power said there was a 3 second a lap drop during a stint on the tires. I hope Firestone can keep that kind of tire performance on road courses for the year. Tires that have to be managed and have some fall off creates more interesting racing, imo.

Nice work Firestone, keep it up.

DBell, did they bring new tires this year or are these the same exact tires from last year?

[heliocastroneves#3]

I don't know, but in 2010 and 2011 I saw great races here too. This road course simply brings some great racing. Also the new car drives different and so the tires will wear on a different way I guess? Anyways, this race was great and I can't wait for Long Beach!

[DBell]

DBell, did they bring new tires this year or are these the same exact tires from last year?


I don't know, but they way Power worded his answer, I got the impression that they did. He said something along the lines that he didn't think there would be any passing, but because of the tires Firestone chose to bring there was passing.

[numanoid]

I don't know, but they way Power worded his answer, I got the impression that they did. He said something along the lines that he didn't think there would be any passing, but because of the tires Firestone chose to bring there was passing.

INDYCAR: Firestone sets tire specs for Birmingham | News | Motorsport.com (http://www.motorsport.com/indycar/news/firestone-sets-tire-specs-for-birmingham/)

Seems to be the case. Both the blacks and reds got softer and less durable this year.

[jimispeed]

Great job Bourdais!! Excellent coverage! Those cars are a better product than the previous, that's for sure! Hopefully Lotus engines end up contenders!

[Andrewmcm]

Loved the race. Some of the best racing action without the intervention of rain that I've seen in a long time. Let's hope it continues!

[DBell]

Pressdog said it's a .25 overnight. That's very slightly up from last years overnight of .22. Last years rating was a bit of an oddity because the final was higher than the overnight at .34, so we'll see if 2012 final is higher than 2011 final.

I'm not trying to stir a TV ratings bitch-a-thon here. :) I put it in the race thread for those who may want to know and so it's easy for me to find if I want to reference it later.

[numanoid]

Pressdog said it's a .25 overnight. That's very slightly up from last years overnight of .22. Last years rating was a bit of an oddity because the final was higher than the overnight at .34, so we'll see if 2012 final is higher than 2011 final.

I'm not trying to stir a TV ratings bitch-a-thon here. :) I put it in the race thread for those who may want to know and so it's easy for me to find if I want to reference it later.

Please keep doing so. I like to see it and have nowhere to check.

[zako85]

This was a race that makes a point that a good race track is important for having a fun to watch race.. Unfortunately, we have only two other road course races left for this year.

[Marbles]

Pressdog said it's a .25 overnight. That's very slightly up from last years overnight of .22. Last years rating was a bit of an oddity because the final was higher than the overnight at .34, so we'll see if 2012 final is higher than 2011 final.

If you build it; they will come.

They already tore it down once so here's hoping.

[nigelred5]

Glad to hear I have a good race waiting for me on the DVR at home.