OT: Racing 2017 (Spoiler Alert)

[XXXIV]

I enjoyed that Adam.

Always love a good F1 history lesson.

[Rodster]

Should be a good race tomorrow. There is absolutely nothing between Hammy and Finger Boy like .0051 secs. And Seb should have had pole if not for a small lockup in S3. Watching the Sky Sports lap comparison both were tied until Hammy was able to get the power down out of the last corner.

Should be fun watching those two duke it out. Drive of the day goes to Capt Morgan for getting his underpowered sled to P7 on the grid.

[XXXIV]

Gratz Lewis!

Hamilton Vettel heats up.

gf woke me up up to watch last half hour or so...Im still waiting for Ferrari to try plan C.

[pk500]

Terrible news this morning from Italy: Former MotoGP World Champion Nicky Hayden suffered serious head and chest injuries after being hit by a car while road cycling.

I did a lot of work with Nicky when MotoGP raced at IMS. I've worked in motorsports journalism and PR for 29 years, and Nicky is the nicest racer I've encountered, hands down. He is one of the few racers I would let marry my daughter, without hesitation.

Stay strong and get well soon, 69.

[DChaps]

Uhg....that is terrible news Paul. I have always been a fan of Hayden. I was looking in this thread about to post about my excitement for the Indy 500 this year. Damn, thoughts and prayers are with you Nicky.

[pk500]

Thanks, Don.

[GB_Simo]

This is awful news. Thoughts with The Kentucky Kid and all those close to him. Paul, I hope you're bearing up OK.

The latest word coming from Italy sounds less promising than we'd hoped - fingers crossed for a more positive longer-term prognosis emerging over the coming days:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/motorsport/39959770

A few lovely messages of support in that article too, for a man about whom I don't recall ever hearing a bad word. Keep fighting, Nicky.

[Rodster]

Pretty impressive what Capt Morgan pulled off so far, which is he currently sits at #3 on the grid.

[Rodster]

Scary @ss crash for Sebastian Bourdais, a quick reminder how dangerous Indy still is. More amazing was how he survived the impact at a 45 deg angle and was alert when his car came to a halt.

[pk500]

Update on Bourdais straight from the media center here at Indy:

INDIANAPOLIS (Saturday, May 20, 2017) - Verizon IndyCar Series driver Sebastien Bourdais was diagnosed with multiple fractures to his pelvis and a fracture to his right hip following an incident today while attempting to qualify for the 101st Running of the Indianapolis 500 Mile Race.

According to INDYCAR Medical Director Dr. Geoffrey Billows, Bourdais will undergo surgery on his pelvis this evening at IU Health Methodist Hospital. Bourdais was on the third lap of his qualification run at Indianapolis Motor Speedway when his Dale Coyne Racing No. 18 GEICO Honda made hard contact with the Turn 2 SAFER Barrier.

Statement from team owner Dale Coyne: "Sebastien is in good hands here at IU Methodist Hospital with the staff and now we just wait for him to recover."

Additional updates on Bourdais' condition will be released when available.

[pk500]

Latest update on Bourdais. Good news. Almost miraculous, considering he hit the SAFER Barrier at 227 mph and sustained an impact of more than 100G's, according to team owner Dale Coyne:

INDIANAPOLIS (Sunday, May 21, 2017) - Verizon IndyCar Series driver Sebastien Bourdais underwent successful surgery Saturday night for pelvic injuries he sustained while attempting to qualify for the 101st Running of the Indianapolis 500 Mile Race.

The Dale Coyne Racing driver sustained multiple fractures to his pelvis and a fracture to his right hip in the incident Saturday.

“Surgery went well,” INDYCAR Medical Director Dr. Geoffrey Billows said. “I’ve met with Sebastien this morning and he was doing even better than I expected.”

[DChaps]

Wow, thanks for the update Paul. That was one of the most violent impacts I have seen in a long time and is a true testament to the SAFER barrier and the construction of the Indycars. Not long ago that would not have been a survivable impact. Hate that for Sebastien and Dale Coyne as they had a great run going and a good start for the season for such a small team. Shows just how on the edge you still have to be to go fat at Indy. Excited for today's final qualifying but hopeful everyone stays safe.

[Dave]

Holy shi*t Dixon put in an amazing run today. It is crazy to watch the in-car footage and see how little steering input he was applying - the rear end of that car had to be on ice and he kept that thing completely sorted for four laps on the ragged edge.

Alonso sure acclimated himself to 230mph, going to be interesting to see how he handles the madness of race conditions in a week. I have so much respect for what he's doing, just hoping there are a few McLaren Andretti Honda hats around when I take my kids to the track on Saturday.

The 100th running was cool for historic reasons, but this year's race has me more excited to attend than any I can remember. Should be an amazing show next weekend.

[pk500]

Nicky Hayden died today. I'm absolutely gutted. This has hit me harder than any death of a racer since Davey Allison in 1993.

69 was a jewel. A World Champion rider but an even better guy. I enjoyed working with him more than any other racer in my 29 years of motorsports journalism and PR. I was also a HUGE fan before I worked with him. No platitude is a stretch for this guy. Fantastic dude.

Godspeed, racer. I'll NEVER forget you.

[Rodster]

That's terrible news indeed PK.

[DChaps]

Prayers to his family, friends, teammates, competitors, and fans. As Paul states, never saw anything but positives said about him. Sad day for sure. Thanks for all the memories Nicky. Will never forget Laguna Seca.

[EffDee]

I wonder if Kimi was too busy grinning and admiring his pole lap to get excited about it. That seemed pretty amazing to me. To use the old cliché, he seemed to want it more than anyone else today.

[GB_Simo]

Not that there was ever much doubt, but that's enhanced Fernando's reputation somewhat, hasn't it?

So many impressive drives. Ed Jones was terrific, Servia was heading in the right direction until it all came to a stop and who was that driving Max Chilton's car? Huge congratulations to Taku on a wonderful race, and to the men who designed and built a car that Dixie was able to walk away from.

[DChaps]

Not that there was ever much doubt, but that's enhanced Fernando's reputation somewhat, hasn't it?

So many impressive drives. Ed Jones was terrific, Servia was heading in the right direction until it all came to a stop and who was that driving Max Chilton's car? Huge congratulations to Taku on a wonderful race, and to the men who designed and built a car that Dixie was able to walk away from.

Amen to that. Similar looking crash to that which took Dan Wheldon. The types of crashes that Bourdais and Dixon had are a testament to the safety of the cars and tracks, but also still a reminder that no matter what, these racers are still putting their lives on the line every time they get in the car. My son said, "Dad, who is Max Chilton and how is he leading the Indy 500?" Good stuff today overall.

[Rodster]

As Adam mentioned nothing further needs to be said regarding what Alonso pulled off. He's already revered in Indycar circles as one of the all time greats and that includes Mario Andretti heaping praise on Alonso. You don't show up at Indy and post competitive lap times and qualify in the top ten by just being lucky. Unlucky he is that his Honda engine gave up the ghost late in the race and who knows if his dropping back in the race was a result of that. At least Indycar can breathe a sigh of relief knowing he'll want to come back next year to try again.

So the buzz at Monoco is that Kimi got screwed out of a win. If so then why wasn't he pulling away from Finger Boy when out in front? Finger Boy showed him how it's done when Vettel was setting fast lap times on worn tires when out in front to setup the successful over-cut. That's how a teams number one driver is supposed to do it and he did and won the race.

As much as i'm a Kimi fan he needs to realize that race wins are earned and not given out to the sentimental favorite.

[Gangrel]

As Adam mentioned nothing further needs to be said regarding what Alonso pulled off. He's already revered in Indycar circles as one of the all time greats and that includes Mario Andretti heaping praise on Alonso. You don't show up at Indy and post competitive lap times and qualify in the top ten by just being lucky. Unlucky he is that his Honda engine gave up the ghost late in the race and who knows if his dropping back in the race was a result of that. At least Indycar can breathe a sigh of relief knowing he'll want to come back next year to try again.

Well, if you're Lewis Hamilton you imply that indy car racers aren't that good when "someone who's not full time can qualify 5th"

http://autoweek.com/article/formula-one ... d-indy-500

[pk500]

As Adam mentioned nothing further needs to be said regarding what Alonso pulled off. He's already revered in Indycar circles as one of the all time greats and that includes Mario Andretti heaping praise on Alonso. You don't show up at Indy and post competitive lap times and qualify in the top ten by just being lucky. Unlucky he is that his Honda engine gave up the ghost late in the race and who knows if his dropping back in the race was a result of that. At least Indycar can breathe a sigh of relief knowing he'll want to come back next year to try again.

You're going a bit Stephen A. Smith with that statement, Rod. Let me offer the perspective of someone who worked the race in the IMS media center for the last 20 straight days, 14 hours per day.

First, no one in IndyCar circles reveres Alonso as an all-time great at IMS. He's not at the level as a Mears, Foyt, Al Unser, Bobby Unser, Wilbur Shaw, Mauri Rose or Castroneves.

But Alonso's adaptation to oval racing was remarkable. So was his skill and attention to detail. He was a contender for a top-three finish before his Honda quit on Lap 180 yesterday. He earned huge respect for that from fans and drivers.

But even more impressive was his attitude. Fernando was gracious, accommodating and acted like just another guy, absorbing all of the traditions and spectacle of his first Indianapolis 500 start. He never said no to an autograph or picture, did everything PR-wise that was asked of him (and it was a lot). He seemed to love every second of the experience and was a complete gentleman. Class act.

The Indy 500 fans recognized that immediately and embraced Alonso. That's why he received a standing ovation when he climbed from his stranded Honda inside of Turn 1 yesterday.

But as for returning next year? That's a long shot. It won't happen if he's with any team besides McLaren-Honda. It also won't happen if his car is more competitive and scoring points on a regular basis.

Still, Alonso will be back. He has caught Indy fever, just like anyone does who attends, works or competes in the greatest race in the world. No doubt he'll be back in the next three to four years, after his F1 career ends. Sato won yesterday at age 40, so Fernando still has plenty of time to return.

As for Hamilton, he's a f*cking prat who should keep his trap shut. I did a media tour last Tuesday in Louisville with Pippa Mann and Ed Jones, and Pippa told me that she chatted with Fernando at a function one evening for a few minutes. He told her he was amazed how much more difficult oval racing was than he expected. He said anyone in F1 who thinks it's easy is NUTS.

[Rodster]

As Adam mentioned nothing further needs to be said regarding what Alonso pulled off. He's already revered in Indycar circles as one of the all time greats and that includes Mario Andretti heaping praise on Alonso. You don't show up at Indy and post competitive lap times and qualify in the top ten by just being lucky. Unlucky he is that his Honda engine gave up the ghost late in the race and who knows if his dropping back in the race was a result of that. At least Indycar can breathe a sigh of relief knowing he'll want to come back next year to try again.

You're going a bit Stephen A. Smith with that statement, Rod. Let me offer the perspective of someone who worked the race in the IMS media center for the last 20 straight days, 14 hours per day.

First, no one in IndyCar circles reveres Alonso as an all-time great at IMS.

Granted I really haven't had any interest in Indycar racing since the series broke up in the mid 90's. It's never been the same for me and I use to watch it every year with the exception of Danica Patricks first year and now this. So I'm just going by this article posted below on ESPN Racing. It's quite possible in fact the odds are he'll be back next year. No one in F1 wants him that has a title contending car, (too much baggage) not Merc or Ferrari. His odds of getting a title contender with Renault is unlikely. He may find that McLaren is his only option and Zak Brown has said he wants to participate at Indy every year and is even considering running a team full time.

http://www.espn.co.uk/f1/story/_/id/194 ... inchcliffe

[fletcher21]

I can't remember the last Indycar race I have seen, but I tuned in yesterday and enjoyed it. Part of it is the mystique that is Indy. Had that been at Michigan or Texas, I wouldn't have cared. I grew up thinking the Indy 500 was the best race of all time. I was so geeked out in 94 when Nascar went to Indianapolis.

One thing that really bugged me is how HIDEOUS those current cars are. Back in the Jimmy Vasser days, those cars were so attractive. That red Target car still sticks in my mind. I think I read somewhere that they are gonna go back to a more traditional look next year, but I could be mistaken. As it is now, the cars look like some weird kind of hybrid or something. The racing was fast and exciting, so I can't complain too much.

Just more proof that Indy is special.

Pk, have you ever played the golf course in the infield? Seems bad ass to me. I need to make the trip one of these years.

[pk500]

One thing that really bugged me is how HIDEOUS those current cars are. Back in the Jimmy Vasser days, those cars were so attractive. That red Target car still sticks in my mind. I think I read somewhere that they are gonna go back to a more traditional look next year, but I could be mistaken. As it is now, the cars look like some weird kind of hybrid or something. The racing was fast and exciting, so I can't complain too much.

The new cars for 2018 are sexy as f*ck: http://www.indycar.com/News/2017/05/05- ... mages-2018

Pk, have you ever played the golf course in the infield? Seems bad ass to me. I need to make the trip one of these years.

No. I don't golf. Four holes are in the infield, with the other 14 outside the backstretch wall. The course is terrific. Designed by Pete Dye, named one of the top 100 public courses in the U.S. by Golf Digest.