It would be hard to argue that the centennial edition of the Indianapolis 500 was rather ho-hum for the first 180 laps. But the near capacity crowd was treated to some drama and then some in the final 20 circuits, as Dan Wheldon seized the moment and captured his second Indy 500 victory by passing rookie J.R. Hildebrand, who with victory in his grasp, tagged the wall in turn four while leading on the final lap and skidded helplessly across the finish line in second place.
Wheldon’s victory temporarily suspended the choke hold that both Team Penske and Team Ganassi have had on the Brickyard for years and gave Herta Motorsports a reason to party until dawn. “I cannot begin to express in words what this victory means to myself, but more importantly this team,” said the affable Wheldon in the post race pandemonium. “We are not the biggest team, but we certainly showed today we can run with anyone in this series.”
It looked like it would be another Borg Warner trophy for Chip Ganassi Racing, as defending champion Dario Franchitti and teammate Scott Dixon combined to lead a whopping 124 laps on a day when the inability of their team to devise a fuel strategy would end their collective hopes for a victory. Dixon did not sugarcoat his disappointment when asked about the fuel calculation blunder. “Complete stupidity,” cited the 2008 Indy 500 winner, who would end up finishing fifth. “There is no way we should run out of fuel after pitting on lap 179.”
As frustrated as Dixon was after the race, it paled in comparison to the thoughts running through the head of J.R. Hildebrand who assumed the race lead with just three laps remaining. Driving in a fuel conservation mode himself, Hildebrand made the error that cost him the race as he attempted to maneuver around the slower car of Charlie Kimball in the fourth turn on the final lap.
“I had made a similar move earlier in the race, but I guess I carried too much speed into the turn with tires that were worn,” added the obviously disappointed, 23-year-old rookie from California.
Graham Rahal brought it home in third place for his best career Indy finish and perennial fan favorite Tony Kanaan fought back to finish fourth after falling to the back of the field on two different occasions.
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Wheldon, who had just a one race deal with Herta Motorsports, is hopeful that their win will create some sponsorships for additional Izod Indy Car series events. While that remains to be seen, how can anyone who voted for the greatest 33 drivers in the history of the Indianapolis 500 have left Wheldon’s name off their ballot?
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The double file restarts were a concern of every driver and rightfully so.
Scott Dixon summed it up beautifully when he said they were “a joke.”
While my opinion means very little to those who run IndyCar, this world class driver is right. I say quit worrying about doing what NASCAR does and scrap the rule before someone gets hurt, especially at high speeds on an oval.
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Danny Bridges, who feels Mario Andretti’s pre race drive of the 1939 Boyle Maserati around the storied Brickyard was as good as it gets, can be reached at (317) 578-1780 or at Bridgeshd@aol.com.
