IndyCar returns to The Glen; speeds rise on new pavement

Championship leader Simon Pagenaud was a disappointing seventh, and will start alongside teammate Montoya, with Jack Hawksworth an impressive ninth for AJ Foyt Racing, the top Honda entry.

With only nine prior races, The Glen isn’t steeped in Indy vehicle history.

To get up to speed on the track, particularly with a newly repaved surface, Pagenaud participated in a Firestone tire test in June and then a full series test August 11.

Before blitzing the track Saturday in record time – a lap of 1 minute, 22.5259 seconds – Dixon’s average starting position for races here had been 4.0.

A race win this weekend is worth 54 points.

With the stickier red-sidewalled Firestone tires coming out tomorrow for qualifying, Dixon told Racer that he expects to see that 2009 track record smashed by over six seconds this weekend.

At a testing session this summer Dixon remarked, “Physically it’s much more demanding than what we’ve had in the past, but I think with the repavement it’s going to make the racing pretty good”. But the Frenchman might need all the cushion he can get since Power is a three-time race victor on the Northern Californian road course. The reigning series champion moved to the top of the 22-car field on his final lap (1m23.892s) which was a considerable amount ahead of KVSH Racing’s Sebastien Bourdais (-0.362), Team Penske’s Will Power (-0.848), and Ganassi’s Tony Kanaan (-0.901) as Chevy-powered cars held the top four spots. Dario Franchitti, now retired, set the outright IndyCar road course lap record of 145.924 miles per hour in a 2000 CART Championship race at Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin.

Pagenaud’s first extended time on the track in his career ended on a sour note.

“We had to put our reservations in about six months ago because this place is packed and booked all the time apparently”, Schumacker said. “I think our team has done the best job all season, and if I drive the best I can, it should take care of itself”.

“Last year, the biggest winners were the fans”, said Castroneves.

“Anytime there are more people in town, they’re likely to call us, because we help relieve stress and aches and pains and do all kinds of good work for people”, Watkins Glen Massage Owner JoAnn Kingsley said. “We’ve got everything we need to get the best cars”.

“It takes a level of commitment at every corner here”, Rahal said. We’ve been super strong on street courses, really strong on road course. “This place is spectacular”.

The Verizon IndyCar Series will conclude its season in the Sonoma Valley for the third consecutive year, as the 2017 schedule will come to a close at the GoPro Grand Prix of Sonoma, Sept. 15-17, officials said.

Ticket information: theglen.com or 866-461-7223.