Iowa – Race: Victory for Hunter-Reay and Tribute to Bianchi

Ryan Hunter-Reay, who hadn’t led a single lap in a race before Fontana in late June, finally secures a victory. This comes almost exactly a year to the day after his success on the same circuit, owned by his team, Andretti Autosport. The American experienced a very difficult season with the introduction of the new aerodynamic kits. He was 14th in the overall standings before the race.

The short track in Newton, Iowa, is the smallest oval visited by IndyCar. With corner banking up to 14°, the 1.4 km track allows for an average speed of over 290 km/h for a lap in under 18 seconds and centrifugal force peaks of nearly 5G in the turns. All this takes place at sunset for a partially nighttime race.

Tribute from IndyCar to Jules Bianchi

The entire IndyCar community gathered before the race for a moment of silence with the public in tribute to Jules Bianchi. Stefano Coletti, deeply affected by the Frenchman’s passing, placed a sticker on his car for Jules, the “god of speed.”

Max Chilton, a driver in Indy Lights this year, paid a heartfelt tribute to his former teammate at Marussia: “He was a driver destined to be world champion.” The Englishman had just achieved his first victory in North America: “I did it for Jules. I’ve been a step behind him these past few years and I’ve learned a lot from him. I can guarantee you that there are things I’ve learned that helped in the race today. A part of this victory was partly for him and with him.”

The decimation of the leaders

Shortly after the start, Juan Pablo Montoya suffers a suspension failure. His uncontrollable car ends up in the wall. At the restart, Kanaan retakes the lead. Further back, Graham Rahal overtakes Charlie Kimball and Stefano Coletti on the outside, at high speed. Kimball is warned at the last moment of Rahal’s approach and gets sandwiched between the American and the Monégasque. The accident is narrowly avoided, and Kimball has to stop to change his front wing.

Graham Rahal, 3rd in the championship, is forced to pit due to a slow puncture. He returns to the track two laps behind the leader. During the green flag pit stops, around the 80th lap, Scott Dixon encounters difficulties with his right rear wheel and loses valuable time.

On the 172nd lap, Charlie Kimball hits the wall after being caught in the wake of two preceding cars. It’s ultimately retirement for the American. This triggers another round of pit stops under the yellow flag. Graham Rahal, who had climbed to 5th position, suffers a gearbox problem as he leaves his pit box.

At the 190th lap, it’s Tony Kanaan’s turn to pit due to a technical problem. At the 195th lap, Stefano Coletti loses control of his car, causing another yellow flag. At the 232nd lap, Scott Dixon also suffers an issue with his car and has to head to the garage for repairs. It’s the third Ganassi out of the race. Only rookie Sage Karam is still on track for the American team.

Wheel-to-wheel fights at 290 km/h

Takuma Sato triggers a final yellow flag after hitting the wall due to a problem similar to Montoya’s. At the restart, 22 laps from the end, Ryan Hunter-Reay, the 2012 champion, is leading the race for his first win opportunity of the year. He is ahead of Josef Newgarden, who is looking to become the first driver to secure 3 wins this year, and Sage Karam racing for the very first victory of his IndyCar career.

Tensions rise: Ed Carpenter complains on his radio about Sage Karam’s dangerous behavior. The scene continues after the finish: “Grow up!” shouts the driver-owner towards the young Karam. Graham Rahal continues his comeback, specializing in overtakes on the outside.

It’s ultimately an American quadruple under the checkered flag: Ryan Hunter-Reay scores his first victory of 2015 ahead of Josef Newgarden, Sage Karam, and Graham Rahal, the luckiest driver among the championship leaders. The latter moves to second place in the overall standings and is now 42 points behind Montoya, less than a single victory, with three races remaining.

Sébastien Bourdais, starting last, finishes 9th. Tristan Vautier achieves the feat of placing his Dale Coyne Racing in 12th position while Simon Pagenaud disappoints with his 14th position.

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