Something Tony Kanaan and Oriol Servia Should Like

I was thinking amount the amount of passes Oriol Servia and Tony Kanaan have made this year and that got me thinking even more. What if IndyCar awarded some type of points for positions increased by the end of a race? I am not saying IndyCar should do this but I was playing with it and thought of a way it could work. The criteria for "Improvement Points" is simple.

1. You only get them if you gain from your starting position. Example, if you start on pole and finish fifth you do not lose points but if you start fifth and win you do earn "Improvement Points."

2. Each positioned gained is a half of a point. Example, start third and finish second you earn a half a point. Start twenty-fifth and win you gain twelve points.

3. To avoid having a drive score more points than the winner of the race, make a win worth 60 points.
Here is a breakdown of each driver, what races they gained positions and the amount of "improvement points" earned.

Hunter-Reay: Gained 7 at Long Beach, 3 at Sao Paulo, 1 at Milwaukee, 6 at Iowa and 5 at Toronto. Total gained 22, points earned: 11. New points total: 346
Power: 8 at Barber, 11 at Long Beach and 2 at Milwaukee. Total gained 21, points earned: 10.5. New points total: 311.5
Castroneves: 4 at St. Pete, 5 at Long Beach, 14 at Sao Paulo, 8 at Texas, 1 at Toronto. Total gained 32, points earned: 16. New points total: 305
Dixon: 4 at St. Pete, 1 at Barber, 13 at Indianapolis, 10 at Milwaukee and 4 at Iowa. Total gained 32, points earned: 16. New points total: 297
Hinchcliffe: 13 at Long Beach, 2 at Texas, 5 at Milwaukee. Total gained 20, points earned: 10. New points total: 278.
Kanaan: 15 at Long Beach, 5 at Indianapolis, 12 at Belle Isle, 4 at Milwaukee, 16 at Iowa and 13 at Toronto. Total gained 65, points earned 32.5 New points total: 299.5
Pagenaud: 10 at St. Pete, 5 at Barber, 2 at Long Beach, 4 at Sao Paulo, 7 at Indianapolis, 1 at Belle Isle, 3 at Texas, 20 at Iowa. Total gained 52, points earned: 26. New points total: 290
Franchitti: 8 at Barber, 15 at Indianapolis and 12 at Belle Isle. Total gained 35, points earned: 17.5. New points total: 247.5
Briscoe: 4 at Long Beach, 7 at Texas and 5 at Milwaukee. Total gained 16, points earned: 8. New points total: 225.
Servia: 7 at St. Pete, 13 at Barber, 7 at Long Beach, 12 at Sao Paulo, 23 at Indianapolis, 11 at Belle Isle, 16 at Milwaukee and 9 at Toronto. Total gained 98, points earned: 49. New points total: 264
Rahal: 4 at Barber, 1 at Texas, 2 at Milwaukee and 11 at Iowa. Total gained 18, points earned: 9. New points total: 214
Kimball: 13 at St. Pete, 7 at Sao Paulo, 6 at Indianapolis, 12 at Belle Isle, 1 at Milwaukee, 3 at Iowa and 11 Toronto. Total gained 53, points earned 26.5. New points total: 230.5
Wilson: 5 at St. Pete, 4 at Sao Paulo, 14 at Indianapolis, 16 at Texas and 3 at Iowa. Total gained 42, points earned: 21. New points total: 221
Hildebrand: 15 at Long Beach, 7 at Sao Paulo, 4 at Indianapolis, 5 at Belle Isle, 18 at Milwaukee and 8 at Toronto. Total gained 57, points earned: 28.5. New points total: 227.5
Andretti: 2 at Barber, 11 at Belle Isle, 1 at Iowa and 6 at Toronto. Total gained 20, points earned: 10.  New points total: 197
Barrichello: 6 at Barber, 13 at Long Beach, 2 at Sao Paulo, 4 at Iowa and 7 at Toronto. Total gained 32, points earned: 16. New points total: 199
Sato: 22 at Sao Paulo, 2 at Indianapolis, 4 at Milwaukee and 11 at Iowa. Total gained 39, points earned: 19.5 New points total: 195.5
Conway: 6 at Belle Isle, 2 at Texas, 9 at Milwaukee and 8 at Toronto. Total gained 25, points earned: 12.5. New points total: 184.5
Viso: 4 at St. Pete, 3 at Long Beach, 4 at Sao Paulo and 3 at Toronto. Total gained 14, points earned: 7. New points total: 179
Carpenter: 6 at St. Pete, 1 at Barber, 10 at Long Beach, 7 at Indianapolis, 9 at Belle Isle, 7 at Texas,  14 at Milwaukee, 13 at Iowa and 3 at Toronto. Total gained 70, points earned: 35. New points total: 198
Tagliani: 2 at St. Pete, 6 at Milwaukee and 6 at Toronto. Total gained 14, points earned: 7. New points total: 169
Jakes: 4 at Barber, 3 at Long Beach, 2 at Sao Paulo, 2 at Indianapolis, 11 at Texas, 5 at Iowa and 16 at Toronto. Total gained 43, points earned: 21.5. New points total: 183.5
Newgarden: 8 at St. Pete, 12 at Texas and 7 at Toronto. Total gained 27, points earned: 13.5. New points total: 156.5
de Silvestro: 1 at Barber, 12 at Belle Isle, 8 at Iowa and 1 at Toronto. Total gained 22, points earned 11. New points total: 134
Legge: 2 at St. Pete, 1 at Barber, 7 at Long Beach, 8 at Indianapolis, 7 at Texas and 1 at Iowa. Total gained 26, points earned 13. New points total: 116
Bourdais: 5 at St. Pete, 8 at Barber, 8 at Long Beach, 4 at Sao Paulo and 5 at Indianapolis. Total gained 30, points earned: 15. New points total: 117.

The standings would look like this. Change from actually position is in parenthesis.
1. Hunter-Reay
2. Power
3. Castroneves
4. Kanaan (+2)
5. Dixon (-1)
6. Pagenaud (+1)
7. Hinchcliffe (-2)
8. Servia (+2)
9. Franchitti (-1)
10. Kimball (+2)
11. Hildebrand (+3)
12. Briscoe (-3)
13. Wilson
14. Rahal (-3)
15. Barrichello (+1)
16. Carpenter (+4)
17. Andretti (-2)
18. Sato (-1)
19. Conway (-1)
20. Jakes (+2)
21. Viso (-2)
22. Tagliani (-1)
23. Newgarden
24. de Silvestro
25. Bourdais (+1)
26. Legge (-1)

As you can see there would be a lot of movement in the standings. The big movers are Carpenter, Hildebrand, Kimball and Kanaan. It kind of penalizes those who start up in the top ten and finish in the top ten and helps those who start in the back two rows, keep their noses clean and gain twelve positions from twenty-fifth to thirteenth. I am not sure that is the best thing. I am not saying "Improvement Points" should be used but it would be interesting.

What Else Happened Over The Weekend?

With a busy weekend at Toronto a lot of things happened this past weekend and have yet to be discussed.

AJ Allmendinger
Rough weekend for Allmendinger after being banned from the NASCAR race in Daytona for a failed drug test. He has until noon today to submit a "B" sample to be tested. If the "B" test is negative then Allmendinger may come back to NASCAR, another positive test means Allmendinger must go through the Road to Recovery program. Unlike other sports associations, in NASCAR a driver is not suspended for only two races and then they can comeback. The road back is long and all suspensions are indefinite. If the "B" test is positive, we do not know when Allmendinger will be allowed to return. It could be sometime later in 2012, it could be the beginning of 2013, it could be midway through the 2014 season, we do not know. Sam Hornish Jr. is currently scheduled to race this weekend at New Hampshire.

The news of Allmendinger's failed test was surprising. Especially when it came, just hours before the Daytona race. I hope NASCAR considers reworking their system so any suspension or ban is announced on a Monday or Tuesday of a week, that way a driver can get their "B" sample before a race weekend and there is a chance they can clear their name and be allowed to race that weekend.

2013 Schedule
Randy Bernard said at Toronto that Road America and Michigan International Speedway are out of the running for hosting a race in 2013. Bernard will be meeting with Phoenix International Raceway this week and Pocono Raceway is still a possible venue for the 2013 season. The problem with Road America and Michigan is a conflict with sanctioning fees. Phoenix feels that eight month is not enough time to promote a successful race, most likely to be held before the Long Beach race on the weekend of April 13-14, 2013. Bernard has made it known that his goal is 19 races for the 2013 season, 4 more than this season.

I really hope Bernard can work something out with Road America for 2013. It is a fantastic track, seems like everyone and their brother wants IndyCar to go there. I hope IndyCar and ALMS can help the track find a title sponsor for a doubleheader weekend and then the sanctioning fee will not be as big of a problem. As for Phoenix, go talk to Michael Andretti about promoting a race. He did Milwaukee in only about four months and took over promoting the Labor Day weekend Baltimore race in late May. Also, Phoenix, if you are worried about not having a enough time to promote a race then stop dilly-dallying and a sign deal with IndyCar tomorrow that way you have maximum amount of time.

If Bernard keeps all 15 races on the schedule for next year and has already added Houston, the series is only three away from their goal. It seemed Phoenix, Pocono and Road America were the likely three but that no longer seems certain. With Phoenix and Road America hanging on the fence, other possible venues are really unknown at this time. Even with the difficulty of bringing races, old and new, to the schedule, Bernard still has to re-sign Texas, Sonoma, Fontana, Mid-Ohio and Baltimore for 2013.

Hinchcliffe Got On GoDaddy's Homepage
This actually happened yesterday but it is great for Hinchcliffe. A good driver gets some exposure for the series and may draw interests from the average and non-fans. Ryan Hunter-Reay got some nice exposure after his third straight win in the USA Today, let's hope some more IndyCar drivers can get their names known.

How About A Wednesday Night Race?

Every summer brings the Major League Baseball All-Star Game. This traditional Tuesday night show draws the attention of the American audience as the race for the postseason begins. Then comes the following Wednesday and the lack of sporting events. It is an off day for all MLB teams, none of the other major sports leagues are in season and ESPN uses this night to host their annual sports award show, the ESPYs.

But what is a dead day for sports, very well could be a great chance for exposure. IndyCar fans complain when races go head-to-head on TV with The Masters, any NASCAR race, NBA or NHL playoffs and especially the NFL. But here is IndyCar's chance.

As I have said prior, I think a Wednesday night race at Richmond would be great and it would bring in good ratings if the race was on ABC. Sure you are going against the ESPYs but I think an IndyCar oval race would be way more exciting than an award show with terrible jokes and where all the winners are predictable. Richmond International Raceway is not far at all from downtown Richmond and if IndyCar could bring the festival environment they had at Milwaukee to Richmond, it could be a great draw. Obviously a Wednesday night race would be a one-day show. Keep ticket prices reasonable and with the racing that we have seen on the ovals the fans should be satisfied afterwards. One problem is timing. The teams just ran Toronto and two days off would not be a great break at all. But the teams would still have eight days until the Edmonton race weekend. Another possibility is move Toronto back a week but now, instead of having two days to turn the cars around for Richmond, the teams would have two days to turn the cars around for Toronto. It is really a catch-22 but the hectic schedule may be worth it in the end.

If Richmond is not possible, then Kansas Speedway would be a good alternative. With the same aero package used at Texas and considering they now have the casino in turn two, promotion and bringing people in should not be too difficult. Memphis International Raceway is not the first place IndyCar fans want to go to but it is a 3/4 mile oval, has lights, is only a half hour from downtown Memphis and is a market without any major NASCAR races kind like Iowa when it first opened. Plus Josef Newgarden is from Tennessee, why not give him a home race? Also, have busing to the track from these downtown areas; that way people don't have to worry about drinking and driving.

I have one final idea for a Wednesday night race but I have to warn you before I tell you because it is a little different than the usual. A dirt race. Now before you jump to conclusions and say no, hear me out. There has not been a major, nationally known racing series to run a dirt race in a long time. Most of the average fans have no one idea you can race on dirt. It would be something that the average fan has never seen before. The NHL has the Winter Classic, their annual outdoor hockey game and the fans love it. This could be IndyCar's version of that. A 50 lap race shown on ABC would brings the series back to it's roots and connect with the die-hard fans who grew up watching dirt races and maybe even once raced on dirt. The Indiana State Fairgrounds would be the perfect place for it. Most of the teams are located in Indianapolis, they are heading there after Toronto anyway, just have them quickly turn the cars around. Plus, a dirt race on ABC could draw in a title sponsor. Who would not want to be associated with the first IndyCar race on dirt in over thirty years?

As for the lack of experience on dirt for some of the drivers, they will either have to learn. No exceptions. Give them plenty of testing time and you will have those who learn quickly and those who will struggle no matter what. Nobody wants the field handicapped at Toronto because, for example, Ed Carpenter isn't a great road and street courses driver. Same here in this situation. If Carpenter and Clauson, if he got a one-off ride, dominate and Power, Franchitti and Hunter-Reay struggle then tough.

Whether on dirt or a paved oval, an IndyCar race the Wednesday after the MLB All-Star Game should be considered. For a fan base than complains about being head-to-head with other sporting events, here is a golden opportunity to be on center stage.

Toronto: First Impressions

1. Who had Charlie Kimball AND Mike Conway on the podium?

2. With his third consecutive win, Ryan Hunter-Reay is the first American to win three straight since AJ Allmendinger won Portland, Cleveland and Toronto in the 2006 ChampCar Season.

3. Pretty spreaded out start. Could have been called back.

4. It's going to be a tough second half for Dixon after loosing his fifth engine today.

5. Bourdais will have his chances in the next four races.

6. Tough race for Rahal and Hinchcliffe.

7. Pagenaud has had a great season but does not need to run guys to the wall. Newgarden had a great day going, had the fastest lap of the race. Now he and Rubens Barrichello have something in common and I am talking about knowing what it is like to be driven down to the wall.

8. Add Justin Wilson to the list of guys who had a rough day.

9. Dario Franchitti has not had much luck starting from pole position.

10. Championship picture is pretty interesting. Stinks that we have another off week and Edmonton is two weeks away.

Morning Warm-Up: Toronto 2012

Dario Franchitti will be on pole for a third consecutive race. He beat Will Power and Justin Wilson for the pole. Franchitti looks to finish better though then the past two races he started in pole. He did not finish either of those races and didn't even complete a lap at Iowa. The only other Chevrolet in the top six was Sebastien Bourdais and he will start fourth, followed by Scott Dixon and Canadian Alex Tagliani. Winner of the previous two races, Ryan Hunter-Reay qualified seventh. The other Canadian James Hinchcliffe qualified ninth but both he and Tagliani will have to serve 10 spot grid penalties and will start sixteenth and nineteenth respectively. Simona de Silvestro who was to start twenty-first also changed her engine and will start twenty-fifth. It was an even split between Honda and Chevrolet in the top ten but give Honda the edge as they took seven of the top twelve.

Toronto is the first race this season with Push2Pass. Unlike the previous Push2Pass system used by IndyCar, this Push2Pass system has a time limit, just as it did when used by ChampCar. For Toronto, the teams will have 100 seconds worth of the extra horsepower. IndyCar used to limit each teams to a certain amount of pushes of the button per race.

The track itself has seen some work done to it, notably with the track being repaved at turn three and a new slab of concrete in turn nine.

While we do have two Canadian drivers in the field, this will be the first Toronto race that Paul Tracy will not be participating in since 1991, a race that was won by Michael Andretti. Five times the Toronto race has been won from the pole position, Franchitti was the last to do so in 2009. The farthest back a winner has come from was 2001 when Michael Andretti won from thirteenth position, the final of his seven Toronto wins.

Quick Note: 2010 Star Mazda Champion and Road to Indy graduate Conor Daly finished 5th and 2nd in the two GP3 Series races held at Silverstone this weekend.

Coverage begins tomorrow on ABC at 12:30pm ET, green flag will be around 1:00pm ET.

Track Walk: Toronto 2012

After a weekend off, the Izod IndyCar Series heads to Toronto for the tenth round of the championship. Will Power leads the championship by only three points over Ryan Hunter-Reay who has won the last two races at Milwaukee and Iowa. This is the first street course race since Belle Isle back on the first Sunday in June. Lot to cover so let's get to it.

How Will The Racing Be?
We saw four really good street and road course races to begin the year and then a major dud in Belle Isle. The series has brought back push to push beginning at Toronto and for the remaining street and road race in 2012. The last two races at Toronto have been pretty good, although last year's race was a crash filled event. With the "defending rule" no longer in effect, let's see how the racing goes. No one wants to see a parade. Weather looks good for Toronto. Looks like a chance of showers on Saturday and a cool day on Sunday. The Push to Pass allotment determined by IndyCar for the Toronto race will be 100 seconds.

Race Is On ABC
The penultimate ABC covered race is Toronto and this is a good chance to bring in respectable ratings. The NASCAR race is on Saturday night and there is no NHL or NBA playoffs on. You got some Major League Baseball games but only the Sunday game on TBS is a threat to take away ratings. The IndyCar race might be up against the Wimbledon Gentlemen's Final which will be on ESPN but the IndyCar race will be a lead-in to tape-delayed Wimbledon coverage on ABC meaning the end of the IndyCar race could benefit. There is some golf on CBS this weekend and if Tiger Woods is in contention it could terrible for possible viewers.

Engines
IndyCar released engine counts for each team with six races remaining. Each team is allowed five fresh engines for the season and if they go to a sixth engine, regardless if their fifth engine blows up in a race or test session or they reach the mileage limit, they will receive a ten spot grid penalty at the following event. The teams that switch from Lotus before Indianapolis are only allowed four fresh engines with their new manufacture. Five drivers are on their last engine in Toronto. Four are the Honda teams of Scott Dixon, Mike Conway, Takuma Sato and Simon Pagenaud; the fifth is the lone Lotus of Simona de Silvestro. The only Honda team with two fresh engines remaining is James Jakes, while five Chevrolet teams, all three Andretti Autosport cars, JR Hildebrand and EJ Viso have two fresh engines remaining. All the other teams have one fresh engine remaining. More engine failures could lead us to seeing more situations like Long Beach where half the field has to serve grid spot penalties and the top five or six have to drop back and work their way to the front.

Prediction
Toronto will be a good race. A sufficient amount of passing that keeps the fans into the race. I have two picks for this race. One is Justin Wilson who has won at Toronto before and has a great track record. The other is the sentimental favorite James Hinchcliffe. It would be amazing if he won his first race in front of his home crowd. If Hinchcliffe does not win, I still see him keeping up his consistency on road and street courses and getting a podium. Ryan Hunter-Reay keeps up his trng of good runs and passes Will Power for the Overall Championship lead. Graham Rahal gets a top ten, as does Simon Pagenaud and Josef Newgarden finally gets a finish that he deserves in the top ten. Sleepers: Alex Tagliani and Sebastien Bourdais who returns after sitting out for the oval races.

Let's Keep Racing True To Form

In the past decade, racing series have been catering to the average fans. With green-white-checkered rules and the Chase in NASCAR, Push2Pass used in ChampCar and IndyCar and the DRS in Formula One, each series is trying to create more passing and excitement but some are still clamoring for more.

Bruton Smith, president of Speedway Motorsports Incorporated which owns Texas Motor Speedway, Kentucky Speedway and Las Vegas Motor Speedway to name a few, said Saturday before the Cup race at Kentucky that NASCAR needs "mandatory cautions." Smith in essences feels that green flag runs are "ruining our sport."

I don't know about you but I would rather watch 100 laps of green flag racing than a wreck every 15 laps. Take the IndyCar races on ovals this year. Plenty of on-track action and these green flag runs show the cars that get better over the course of a run. Texas and Iowa are great example. Wilson was running about a tenth of a second a lap quicker than Rahal at Texas before Rahal brushed the wall. Hunter-Reay was fifth on the final restart, worked his way to third and then passed Andretti and then Dixon for the lead after 35 laps of what would be a stint of 45 green flag laps. Not only did Hunter-Reay grab a few positions, Andretti and Kanaan both got by Dixon and Simon Pagenaud moved all the way up to fifth before all was said and done.

Some had a problem with the finish of the Iowa race because it was finished under caution. Not every race can have a photo finish, same way not every football game can end with a Hail Mary or 50 yard field goal or every basketball game with a buzzer beater. I don't hear football fans displeased that a team that was leading by 21 points simply ran the ball for the first two downs and then took a knee to end the game. The leader is rarely the leader on accident. They have obviously worked their way to the front. If they are leading with four laps to go and there is an accident and the track can not be cleared in time for another restart then tough. Why should the guy in second or third get a shot at the leader when they couldn't get him after 200 miles? If a team is not leading after 60 minutes of a football game they don't get four plays to try to force overtime or win the game. They lost and the game is over.

Let's keep racing true to form. It doesn't need manufactured green-white-checkered finishes and if you have a problem when a series has too many races finishing under caution then maybe the series should look into the reasoning behind it and make a change where needed. Mandatory cautions are definitely not needed. You can see a lot of passing over green flag runs. Racing does not and should not be worrying about"being in the entertainment business." Racing is fine and entertaining enough with out that crap.