With the Harding Steinbrenner Racing operation being absorbed into Andretti Autosport I think Herta could be a championship contender in his sophomore season. It will be change but Herta won two races, three pole positions and had a handful of other impressive results for a single-car team that was cash-strapped and somehow made it to every single race. We have been quick at times to crown the next generation driver to carry IndyCar's flag, whether it be A.J. Foyt IV, Marco Andretti or Graham Rahal, but Herta is different. He is still young, he is only 19 years old, but he is at another level of maturity than almost every teenage driver to enter IndyCar before him.
Herta made history in 2019 and it feels like more history will come in 2020.
2. Will Power gave Herta a strong fight for the victory but didn't have enough. Power deserves a lot of praise because he started on the primary tire and moved up in each stint. Power was running block but it became clear the championship would be going to a Team Penske driver and Power was given the green light to go after the victory.
Power has had a lot of things go against him the last few seasons. If one of these seasons he doesn't have a mechanical failure while starting on pole position or doesn't spin while running in the top five Power will be a title contender. It has been a while since Power has been in the fight but the speed is there.
3. Scott Dixon had an outside shot at the title but he couldn't get clear of Herta at the start and the unfortunate events did not bite his championship challengers. Dixon had a fight with Simon Pagenaud for what seemed to be 75 of 90 laps and Dixon was a strong veteran, knowing how to take the preferred line away and it ended up with his tenth podium finish of 2019.
This was a championship year for Scott Dixon only for him to end up fourth. Two victories is a little low but he had six runner-up finishes and he had a third at Long Beach to add to this third today. Ten podium finishes is enough most years. This happened to be the year Dixon had a slew of poor results bite him.
He was caught in an accident that was not of his making in the Indianapolis 500 and that dropped him from a top ten finish to 17th. He clipped a barrier in Belle Isle while in contention for a podium finish and instead ended up 22nd. He got together with Colton Herta at Texas while in the top five. At Gateway, debris punctured his radiator on the first stint and instead of fighting for a top five he was 20th. The biggest blow was leading at Portland and having electrical issues take him out of the race, leaving him to settle for 16th.
If you gave Dixon third in that Belle Isle race, fifth at Texas and a victory at Portland that is 80 points into his favor. He lost the title by 63 points. That is not even taking into consideration the Grand Prix of Indianapolis, where Pagenaud chased Dixon down in the wet on a day when Dixon led most of the race and had the best car for 94% of that race. That is another ten points that could have been in his favor. You flip two or three results and this entire championship is run differently.
We cannot flip those results but this was not a year where Dixon took a step back. Dixon was on his A-game in every race. Like other sports, it was a few bounces that went the wrong way that decided it.
4. Simon Pagenaud gave it his all and put pressure on his teammate Josef Newgarden but he could not get clear of Dixon. Other than leading a lap through pit strategy this race, and championship, was out of reach for Pagenaud.
Simon Pagenaud is the driver that belonged in the championship fight and yet still felt like he did not accomplish as much as his other challengers. Pagenaud had a glorious month of May with victories in the Grand Prix of Indianapolis and Indianapolis 500 and to add to it he won the Indianapolis 500 from pole position but despite these results and a victory at Toronto it felt like Newgarden, Rossi and Dixon had all done more.
Outside of Pagenaud's three victories, his only other podium finish was third at Pocono. Outside of those three victories and that third at Pocono, his only other top five finishes were fourth at Iowa and fifth at Gateway. Pagenaud was consistent, he has always been consistent and that kept him in the championship fight. He did not squander the double points earned at Indianapolis. That was the base for his championship hopes.
Double points are a point of contention around IndyCar circles but this is what has been laid out for all the drivers. Pagenaud wasn't given a special path to the championship. There is not one path to the championship. Every path is different and this was Pagenaud's path. He didn't get the Astor Cup but two strong outings in the double-point events got him second, 25 points short.
5. Felix Rosenqvist gets Rookie of the Year and he got it with an incredible drive from 14th to fifth. It appeared Rosenqvist may have ended up on the podium but he did not have the tires late and lost a position to Pagenaud.
Herta won two races and that will be remembered over Rosenqvist's Rookie of the Year but Rosenqvist was outstanding this year. People were writing him off at the end of May and he ended up sixth in the championship, five points ahead of Herta.
If Roseqnvist doesn't get that penalty in qualifying, he would have been in the Fast Six and he probably would have been on the front row with Herta, although I think he would have won pole position and I think he could have pulled out the victory.
That victory is coming in 2020.
6. Alexander Rossi got stuck with the championship contenders and he could not break away. Rossi didn't have the pace to go to the front and force Newgarden and Pagenaud to chase him. Rossi was stuck and that seems to be the theme of his second half of 2019. Rossi didn't lead a lap in the final seven races. His last lap led was the final lap at Road America, a dominant victory where he led 54 of 55 laps.
On top of it, Rossi had no help. While Newgarden and Pagenaud had Power in the mix and Rosenqvist climbed up to the aid of Dixon, none of the other Andretti Autosport drivers were there for Rossi, which is ironic. Last year, all of Rossi's teammates were at the front and Rossi blew it, cutting a tire down at the start. This year, Rossi was at the front and had no help. With no help all he could do was get to the lead and run but he couldn't do that. Once he was stuck in third he was a sitting duck and Newgarden remained on his rear wing because Newgarden knew that would be enough.
This was a disappointing season for Alexander Rossi and that is tough to say because he still finished third in the championship, 33 points off Newgarden. The year started with all eyes being on Alexander Rossi. After narrowly losing the title to Dixon in 2018, a title that very well could have been his, it seemed like 2019 would be the year he would claim it.
Rossi played it smart. He did not have as many poor races where he coughed up points because of instead of finishing on the podium he ran wide and finished sixth or seventh but while he played it smart, got strong results, it was not enough. He only won two races. Newgarden beat him twice in races that should have been Rossi's. The first Belle Isle race and Texas could be all we need to look back on when discussing how Newgarden won this title over Rossi.
There were other blips but nothing significant against Rossi. Austin was the first missed opportunity. At worse, Rossi was going to finish second but a caution before his final pit stop shuffled him down to 13th and he could only climb to ninth. At Pocono, he was caught in a first lap accident and cost him a shot at a load of points. The one time Rossi left points on the table was at Gateway. Instead of making his final pit stop under yellow and dropping from fifth to ninth and having at climb his way to the front in the closing laps, Rossi tried to stretch it because Newgarden was just ahead of him. Instead, Rossi had to stop under green and he finished a lap down in 13th.
This feels likes a missed opportunity. It was a season full of missed opportunities. There are the three in the paragraph above; the two races Newgarden won where Rossi was second and then the Indianapolis 500, another second place finish. Rossi didn't really put a wheel wrong. Everyone makes a mistake or two in as season but in a case where he minimized his mistakes he just fell short again.
7. Before we get to the man of the hour, we come to Sébastien Bourdais, who went from 19th to seventh with a hurt neck. Bravo. He falls two points shy of tenth in the championship but it was a valiant effort.
This was the year Newgarden made us remember. It was not that 2018 was a horrible year for him. He won three races in an unsuccessful title defense but again finished fourth in the championship and yet we kind of forgot about him. We forgot his ability to string together results and bring the car home and in a top spot.
Newgarden didn't do it alone. This championship falls a lot on Team Penske president and Newgarden's strategist Tim Cindric. It was a season of timely class that shifted championship control into Newgarden's favor and it started in the first race of the season. Newgarden was behind Felix Rosenqvist and Will Power but those two got stuck behind lapped traffic. Newgarden made a pit stop and closed the gap so when Rosenqvist and Power stopped Newgarden was ahead of those two.
It happened again at Belle Isle. In the first race, Newgarden was on pit lane when Ed Jones ended up in the barrier. Rossi and Dixon had yet to make a pit stop. Newgarden cycled to the lead and with a damp track off line he was able to hold off Rossi.
At Texas, Newgarden was running in the top ten but he was not a challenger at the front until a caution came out. Newgarden had a choice to stretch it and make it on three stops or split the closing laps and doing it on four stops. Cindric made the call to split it. He made a third stop under caution and then ran hard. While other cars made their final pit stops under green, Newgarden kept flying and with the benefit of a short stint he was able to make that fourth pit stop and come out in the lead. From there, he was able to hold off Rossi when at no other point in the night was Rossi trailing the Tennessean.
Newgarden played from a position of power all season. He led the championship after every race but the Indianapolis 500, where he was second, a single point behind Simon Pagenaud. Newgarden raced today from a position of power. He stayed on Rossi's rear wing, following him for basically 90 laps. When Rossi stopped, Newgarden stopped. Rossi was a sitting duck.
This was Newgarden's year and another well-earned championship that squashes any concern that Newgarden would be a one-hit wonder.
9. James Hinchcliffe finishes ninth, and he also tweaked his neck, and this caps what was a disappointing season and now begins an interesting offseason. If Hinchcliffe remains in the Arrow McLaren SP fold the results have to improve. The 2020 season is a contract year and 12th in the championship with one podium finish and that podium finish being his only top five finish is not going to save him come 2021.
I think Hinchcliffe is a lame duck no matter what in 2020, unless he wins the Indianapolis 500 and has a chance at the championship at Laguna Seca. McLaren is going to use him to work out the kinks and then dump him come 2021 for a driver the team desires.
Perhaps Hinchcliffe can get out early. It might be his best move.
10. Ryan Hunter-Reay rallied from stalling on his first stop. Hunter-Reay fell to 24th but got back to tenth. He will end tied on points with Herta for seventh in the championship but Herta's victories gives him the better championship finish.
This is almost a changing of the guard. Herta officially enters the Andretti fold and he finishes leveled with the elder statesman. This is the third time in the last four seasons Hunter-Reay did not get a race victory. He had the pace at times but it seems to be dwindling. He turns 39 years old in December. Will Hunter-Reay have one more surge or will the decline continue? It is sad to see. It happens to every driver. I think we all hope he has another two or three good years in him.
11. Marcus Ericsson missed out on the top ten by a spot and Ericsson had a really good day. He was an early commitment to the three-stop strategy and it got him solidly in the top ten but he had to run longer on each stint and he lost a little ground each time. He had to run the longest final stint and he dropped to 11th.
Ericsson had an up and down rookie season but it was not terrible. He gained a lot of experience and it appears he is not in McLaren's plans for this team in 2020 but he would be a smart hire.
12. Graham Rahal was on the cusp of the top ten all race and he finished 12th. That was enough to get Rahal tenth in the championship. It was another good but not great year for Rahal. The season started strong but Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing did not have the same pace that it had at the start of the year.
The team had a great outing at Barber and that weekend it seemed RLLR might have been a top team on road and street courses. Perhaps, 2019 was the start and it will build off this year into something better in 2020.
13. Max Chilton did not get a top ten but for him to finish 13th after starting tenth is a great result for him.
Carlin has speed. The team had respectable outing after respectable outing with a few drivers. If this team finds two quality drivers I think Carlin could have someone pushing for the top ten in the championship.
Chilton still seems to be in play at least for road and street courses, which means Carlin would have only one driver competing for championship position. This was not the greatest sophomore season but it was not as bad as it appeared, even though the team had two drivers miss the Indianapolis 500.
14. Marco Andretti was strong and he went from 22nd to 12th in the opening stint but his car was not fully filled the first time and it forced him to stop early again. The fact he still finished 14th is an impressive day.
15. Charlie Kimball was 15th. Not good but not terrible. I think Kimball could be a driver that gets a full time seat. He doesn't light the world on fire but he brings the car home and normally further up the order than where he started.
16. We are going toe pit the rest of the field in chunks: Tony Kanaan was 16th and Matheus Leist was 17th. That is the definition of A.J. Foyt Racing's season: The two drivers were never far apart but never far up the order. Zach Veach had a terrible sophomore season and 18th to cap it off seems right. Veach has one more year left with Andretti Autosport. The team is expanding to five cars. He might be the odd man out regardless of what he does in 2020 but if his results do not improve the team will not have any problem cutting the dead weight.
17. Jack Harvey had a better year than 19th in the finale will show. Meyer Shank Racing had a great showing and I hope MSR and Harvey are full time in 2020. Spencer Pigot was 20th in what was a tough year for Ed Carpenter Racing and Ed Jones retired after an off-road excursion. I think Ed Jones is gone and Pigot is going to have to pick it up in 2020. Conor Daly had a spin bring out the only caution. He was doing well, running on the edge of the top ten.
18. Santino Ferrucci drove into the side of Takuma Sato on the lone restart into the hairpin. This was really Ferrucci's only on-track mistake in 2019, it just happened in the final race and gave him his worst result. To make it worse for Sato, he went from sixth in the championship to ninth. His previous best championship finish was eighth. This was a missed opportunity for Sato.
19. Let's end with Laguna Seca. It was nice to be back and this was a more lively event than almost every Laguna Seca race to come before it. The tire degradation was spot on. The opening of a stint was calm but when the tires started to wear cars starting moving around. It is still a difficult place to pass but we still saw passes.
I am not sure it will ever get back to the old days. It was a nice crowd but there is still room for more if they want to come in 2020. Was this a better location to end the season than Sonoma? I think so. I felt right being back at Laguna Seca. Those are the sights we need to see, the Corkscrew, the flowing nature of the circuit, the marine layer blowing in kind of unexpectedly.
It was nice to be back and I can only hope Laguna Seca grows. I want this to be the start of something great. IndyCar has struggled in developing a great season finale location. Laguna Seca was once that place. After 15 years away we have to start somewhere and I think this was a good start.
20. And that is it for 2019. The next race is March 15, 2020 at St. Petersburg. It is so far away but it will be here before we know it. Over the coming months we will look back at 2019 and since it is the final year of the decade we will also look back at the entirety of the 2010s for IndyCar. It was an eventful decade, from the early years of reunification to the transitioning to the DW12-era and then aero kits and then this period of historic event revivals that will continue into 2020 with the return of Richmond.
We will look ahead and we will look behind. It is fitting that the season ends on the final day of summer. The sun sets with plenty of memories and hopes for the future.
