Sunday morning update from Pocono 500 IndyCar race
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| Revised front wing |
Good morning from Long Pond, PA where today the IndyCars Will be racing in the ABC Supply Pocono 500……hopefully. There is a 35 to 40% chance of showers and if the track gets wet close to race start time, it takes a fair amount of time to dry it, which could delay the race start.
If it does not rain, the forecast calls for a high of 68 and a 10mph breeze out of the NE. This means the wind direction has changed direction from yesterday when the wind was out of the west and down the front straight toward turn 1. The teams and drivers Will have to adjust for this, but 10mph is not a significant speed.
Drivers expect a race similar to the Indy 500 where this year there was less passing than in 2017 when the cars produced more downforce from the top of the car. IndyCar has added an extra piece to the front wings in an effort to plant the front end better and allow the trailing car to tuck up closer to the car in front. However, drivers are not expecting that to help significantly.
Vegas oddsmakers think Will Power Will win his third straight ABC Supply 500 followed by Newgarden, Hunter-Reay, Rossi and Dixon:
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| Polesitter Will Power is favored to win for a third straight time at Pocono |
ABC Supply 500 – Odds to Win @ Pocono Raceway
Scott Dixon #9 +600
Alexander Rossi #27 +550
Josef Newgarden #1 +400
Ryan Hunter-Reay #28 +500
Will Power #12 +350
James Hinchcliffe #5 +2500
Simon Pagenaud #22 +850
Marco Andretti #98 +2000
Tony Kanaan #14 +2500
Ed Carpenter #20 +3000
Robert Wickens #6 +1500
Graham Rahal #15 +4000
Sebastien Bourdais #18 +3000
Ed Jones #10 +4000
Takuma Sato #30 +3000
Zach Veach #26 +3000
Charlie Kimball #23 +10000
Spencer Pigot #21 +10000
Pietro Fittipaldi #19 +12500
Gabby Chaves #88 +15000
Matheus Leist #4 +15000
Max Chilton #59 +15000
With the cool temperatures, which are much more ideal than the hot temperatures seen for this year's Indy 500, we could see a real barn burner of a race. The IndyCars now make most of their downforce from the underbody, but when the air under the car is hot, the molecules are further apart (less dense) and hence the underbody generates less downforce. That caused a lot of drivers to crash out of the Indy 500. With today's overcast skies and cooler temperatures the underbody is going to be working at its absolute best, hopefully allowing the trailing car to tuck up closer to the car in front.
IndyCar fans should not get overly excited about Fernando Alonso coming to IndyCar. While it would be fantastic if he does come, not until he tests the Andretti Autosport Honda Sept 5th at Barber (tentative) Will he make a decision. He might come away thinking the much heavier IndyCar is not to his liking. And even if he does come, if the Renault engine come good as they claim, the McLaren F1 car may become a winner and Alonso has said he will return to F1 if that happens. So Alonso's IndyCar career could turn out to be a one and done disappointment.
Money is also an issue and since he pissed off Honda of Japan over negative comments he made about their F1 engine, they may not be willing to cough up some money, along with Honda HPD, to help pay for Alonso's ride. So stay tuned…….. Mark C. reporting from Pocono