Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg

[FormerFF]

That is about my feeling too. Not so much based on what I saw today, because I didn't. I had things to do today, and knew I wouldn't have time to tape and watch it.

The Danica punching bag is getting old, but alas, DF fan does drive the Danica talk. Then again, he is a true fan, and I wont knock him for being a fan, even if he is unrealistic in his expectations. DF, you could be a Maple Leaf's fan for your devotion. There are people who seriously think every year is the year for them, even when they miss the playoffs 5 years running!

Danica's strength is she drives a safe race. She doesn't make real mistakes because she doesn't risk making banzai passes. She used to, but would rather points race than go for broke trying to get top 5's. The reality is, you look at Hoop's data, her fastest time for the race was about where she finished. Mid pack. Nothing wrong with being consistent and using your head to get good finishes BUT...and this is the BUT...you will only win when the rest of the field screws up or you catch them napping on a fuel run. Which is of course how she won her only race in Japan.

Danica will not race hard for the lead on any road/street course, because it isn't her thing. The problem is, those tracks are now half the schedule. By finishing 7th today, she is trying to mitigate her lack of overall speed. She is points racing on the road/street courses. On the ovals...well she runs really well at Indy (for reasons I have never understood); and she runs decent on the other ovals. IN short, she will likely finish in the top 10, most likely no better than 5th. IN points, that isn't shabby, but as Ken said, who cheers for people who play it safe all the time? You can be a "smart" driver all you want, but if you still don't have that blazing turn of speed and ability to make passes, you wont win races and you are NOT going to win my loyalty.

Simona tries to win. Will Power WINS. Graham tries to WIN. TK tries to WIN. Dario tries to WIN. Danica tries to survive....big difference...and it is the reason the fuss made about her is so contentious. I would have a lot more respect for her as a driver if she raced hard and failed then played it safe...

She plays a prevent defence....all it does is prevent you from winning...

I used to play tennis. I wasn't particularly good at it as I'm not much of a natural athlete. Normally, most tennis players find one part of their game that they're particularly capable of, and develop their game around it. If you don't have a powerful forehand or dominating serve or any other strong shot, you are probably going to wind up being what's called a retriever or a counterpuncher. When you play that style, you goal is to keep the ball in play and to not give your opponent the opportunity to use his power shot. I know, because that's how I played. It's a fairly brutal way to try to win a tennis match. You get run all over the court and are, for the most part, reacting to what your opponent is trying to do to you. I don't think anyone starts out trying to become a counterpuncher, you just fall into it because you can't become a power player.

I think that is what has happened to Danica. I don't see that she has the talent or the skills to run up front, so more often than not, she plays the counterpuncher role, racing with strategy instead of with speed. I don't think it's her choice, I just don't think the has what it takes to challenge for the lead.

Having said that, I wouldn't be surprised if she picks off a few more wins in her career if she stays in Indycar. She's 28, and in the heart of her career. She's probably got another seven or eight strong seasons ahead of her, and she seems to have a knack for the high speed ovals.

Things could turn around for her. She could have a couple of good results on ovals, and wind up being competitive on ovals for a number of years. I'd be surprised if that happens, I just haven't seen anything from her lately that gives the indication that she has that in her.

[V12]

Damn it I missed the race thanks to the wash-out and having work the next day, I recorded an IndyCar slot advertised on Sky the next day but it was a re-run of the cancelled race!

Shame because it sounds like JW showed his class yet again, real shame he couldn't get in a Penske or Ganassi car. Still it's good for the smaller teams like Coyne last year and D&R this year that he can elevate them to the level of the top teams on the road and street courses.

Having said that I should say "smaller team" with the greatest of respect to D&R as they've really impressed me how they've came through not only the official merger but also the influx of CART teams from 2003. Prior to that they were probably behind the likes of Panther, Menard, Hemelgarn, Kelley and Foyt in the pecking order, but seem to have coped the best of the "old IRL" teams, relative to where they were before

[Mark in Oshawa]

I'd say that AOWR was built on dirt tracks, with the Indy 500 as the marquee event. It was CART that took AOWR to the road courses and the street circuits, and one could argue that AOWR reached it's commercial zenith with CART.

The American public can only make room for one top level sport, and it has not distinguished between they type of cars and the type of circuits. Split or no split, there were a number of things working against CART and in favor of NASCAR. The American public decided that NASCAR is that one professional auto racing series, elevating it on the same level with MLB, NFL, NBA, and NHL.

So yes, Indy Car racing, along with other professional forms of motorsport in the US, is second-tier (or niche if you prefer) motorsport. I'm sure NASCAR would love nothing more than to relegate the Indy 500 to the other race on Memorial Day.

Whether that's a bad thing or not is up to the fan.

There is another salient point, that dovetails in to why the US driver is not as numerous. The stars of the 70's came up when Europeans didn't see Indycars as an alternative. The stars, AJ, the Unsers, Mario, Tom Sneva and the like did a lot of the traditional forms of racing. That is sprints and midgets. Mears was a freak of nature from offroad, but for the most part, most of the stars came from a form of racing that has as much in common with the modern aero sensitive rocket with the engine in the back as a Sprint Cup car does.

Take away all the ovals, and we will end up in a worse situation. We need the ovals to keep the unique flavour of the series. IT is AMERICAN even if the drivers are NOT. However, this is the big but. However, the proof is in the fact that road/street circuits as about half the schedule have been an equalizer, a wild card, and for the most part have had success when promoted properly. CART was doing well when it kept that balance. When the IRL was formed, they took all the oval promotors and races for the most part.

I hope the series stays similar to where it is right now with venues for a few years and lets change the cars, engines and yes, maybe drivers. We have had two excellent races so far. The outcome wasn't always easy to figure out and there was action. Entertainment was on the track. IF you have that, it is a start. You have something to sell. The last thing we need is a race like Richmond's last year or the first trip to Iowa where no one could pass....