Detroit track resurfacing done by a bunch of shoemakers

Indy 500 winner Juan Montoya. They resurfaced much of the Detroit track with concrete – it's bumpy as hell and needs to be diamond ground. Why wasn't this picked up before the race weekend?

Juan Pablo Montoya thought it had character.

Takuma Sato felt it was still bumpy, in spots, anyway.

Helio Castroneves, the Team Penske veteran, asked, "What bumps?"

Roger Penske's resurfacing of the Belle Isle racetrack, which now has a lot of new concrete, came under discussion after qualifying Friday for today's Race 1 of the "Chevy Dual in Detroit" Verizon IndyCar Series weekend.

"It has a lot of personality," said Penske's Montoya. "There are a couple good bumps; makes it tricky. It has a lot of character."

Sato, who drives for Indy Car legend A.J. Foyt, was a bit more concerned.

"Certainly these bumps wake me up this morning," he said. "It was massive, the bump. The undulation never stops on the straight with the concrete section."

Sato is very good at Belle Isle, having held the series track record here until Will Power broke it in Friday's Fast 6 qualifying session.

"In the corners, it was actually OK," Sato said. "Last two corners present more grip. But other than that, most of the corners were the same as before. Turns 6 to 7 was significantly improved in terms of grip, but the bumps really made it difficult."

Montoya said he isn't worried about a few bumps.

"I know there's a couple bumps they need to fix probably for next year," Montoya said. "But I think it makes it technical. You know what I mean? It's a street course. I mean, go to New York and drive on the roads."
Castroneves?

Stefano Coletti has driven many race tracks around the world, never one so washboard as Detroit. The concrete contractor must have been some political hacks buddy

Well, he deferred the state of the track to Montoya, who gave it good marks.

Coletti, who is from Monaco, will start eighth in the No. 4 Chevy/Dallara in today's Race 1 at Belle Isle.

"I have never been on a track like this," Coletti said. "It's very bumpy and pretty difficult to drive when it gets hot like this, but everyone is dealing with the same issues.

"The team has done a great job setting up my car for the weekend, and I'm looking forward to trying to pick up a few more positions in the race." Detroit Free Press