Just got back from yesterday's race Pretty exciting, but it lacks the spice that I love about NASCAR (being to a NASCAR race and an Indy race of the same track now, I must say NASCAR is much easier to follow, and more exciting to watch). I am biased on the matter of course being a NASCAR fan for most of my life :P

I never did like the push to pass, and I do beleive that that is what gave Ed the win. Never agreed with that rule.

On another note: what the heck was up with pit road!? NASCAR hardly ever has issues with pit road crashes, and indy car has double the room (Why the heck do they put their tires out in advance? Never understood that. The series shouldn't allow it IMO. Allow them to avoid other cars as they are entering their stall rather than trapping them into a small slot).

Any word on how the injured crew member(s) are?

Quote from Cornys :

I never did like the push to pass, and I do beleive that that is what gave Ed the win. Never agreed with that rule.

Have you watched it from TV overlay? Ed saved like 5 push to passes while Dario used all of his up. Just simply out-smarted him, didn't give him the win at all.

Quote from PMD9409 :

Have you watched it from TV overlay? Ed saved like 5 push to passes while Dario used all of his up. Just simply out-smarted him, didn't give him the win at all.

The track announcers were somewhat dumb.. they only mentioned those after the race was over, so I'm not sure about the numbers. I'm going to watch it eventually as I do have it recorded

In person it just looked like he pressed the button out of 4 and flat out passed him. I was looking for some side drafting rather than a push to pass

Combination of momentum (high line), side draft, and push to pass. Even the 4 laps that Ed was able to stay on the outside of Dario, Dario was using the push to pass and Ed was not. It didn't seem to play a huge role, but was more the "final push" that got him across the line first.

Quote from Cornys :

Any word on how the injured crew member(s) are?

Broken knee for Viso's crew chief. No idea about Hildebrand's mechanic.

E: Multple tibia fractures for Hildebrand's mechanic: http://auto-racing.speedtv.com ... rewman-undergoes-surgery/

34 cars signed in for the season finale :o Isn't there a restriction that 28 or 30 cars may only start? If so, qualifying will already be exciting!

I think with 15 laps to go Dario had 15 push to pass and Ed had 8.

Quote from Storm_Cloud :

I think with 15 laps to go Dario had 15 push to pass and Ed had 8.

Exactly, and Dario used up all before the final lap. I didn't quite understand that logic at all.

Quote from TFalke55 :

34 cars signed in for the season finale :o Isn't there a restriction that 28 or 30 cars may only start? If so, qualifying will already be exciting!

Randy Bernard confirmed on Twitter that the 34 cars will be allowed to take the start. No sure how many points will be given to the driver finishing 34th - guess it'll be 10.

Quote from PMD9409 :

Exactly, and Dario used up all before the final lap. I didn't quite understand that logic at all.

Dario said somewhere that the team told him at some point, with X laps to go, that he had enough overtakes to use one each lap. According to him, they either miscalculated it, or he used two instad of one at one lap.

Looking forward to this, I hope Power won't let the title slip away. Maybe I'll even get up to watch the race live.

Quote from GreyBull [CHA] :

Randy Bernard confirmed on Twitter that the 34 cars will be allowed to take the start. No sure how many points will be given to the driver finishing 34th - guess it'll be 10.

Yeah I guess so... wow the most crowded US-singleseater race in recent years^^ more cars then in indy, that's interesting

Quote from TexasLTU :

Looking forward to this, I hope Power won't let the title slip away. Maybe I'll even get up to watch the race live.

I'm affraid you missed one episode. Power only has a slim outside chance now, after getting his race ruined by Dreyer & Reinbold last week-end.

And err, "get up"? The race will start around 23:00 Lithuanian time AFAIK.

Quote from GreyBull [CHA] :

I'm affraid you missed one episode. Power only has a slim outside chance now, after getting his race ruined by Dreyer & Reinbold last week-end.

And err, "get up"? The race will start around 23:00 Lithuanian time AFAIK.

Well, Getting pole leading most laps, and having two guys between him and dario, that is wills ticket to the championship

Quote from TFalke55 :

Well, Getting pole leading most laps, and having two guys between him and dario, that is wills ticket to the championship

Mind you, Power still hasn't won a proper oval race so far in his life. You cannot really count on Dario making a mistake either, the guy has been in the top 5 five times out of seven on ovals this year(Texas 2 random grid farce excluded). Furthermore, Dario will probably be helped by Dixon, Rahal, and possibly Kimball if the latter carries on with his strong form. Meanwhile at Penske, who knows where Briscoe and Castroneves will be - both had such an unconsistant season.

I really hoped to see Power clinch the title this year, especially after what happened last year. To be honest I(and I suppose many observers too) thought it was all over already after Mid-Ohio, and I was really astonished to see him recover such a huge point deficit so quickly. But now... Can't see how he can make it. Unless Ana decides to make things even at Vegas

Quote from GreyBull [CHA] :

Dario said somewhere that the team told him at some point, with X laps to go, that he had enough overtakes to use one each lap. According to him, they either miscalculated it, or he used two instad of one at one lap.

His team was right.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y-lSPf6hXlE

14 with 14 to go
12 with 12 to go (Ed has 7 left)
9 with 10 to go
8 with 8 to go
7 with 6 to go (Ed still has 7!)

And now we see where he fails.

He used 2-3 in one lap with 6 to go.

The team you hear is Ed's, as a lap later he says "We now have one more than Franchitti".

----

Vegas should be interesting, 34 cars could cause massive chaos.

Quote from PMD9409 :

Vegas should be interesting, 34 cars could cause massive chaos.

Maybe that is the reason why there are 34 cars, to cause chaos: Next year there is a new car! At the end al cars are fit only for a knacker's yard.

So basically:

"Lets go out with a bang!"

It's a shame that it's still going to be a Dallara chassis only next year. I really want to see Lotus get involved agian.

Quote from Rappa Z :

It's a shame that it's still going to be a Dallara chassis only next year. I really want to see Lotus get involved agian.

it will always be a dallara chassis, only the aero kits will be different from 2013 on

Ay, that's what i mean.

Power can have a chance if he can bring Kentucky pace to Vegas, there both super speedways so its not out of the question though, the car at kentucky was soo fast it took away any drafting advantage anyone could get from following him.

Crazy quali. 7 cars to go, Servia and Ed on front row so far, Power and Dario down to 14th and 15th already

Hoping that the winner comes from the first 2 rows tomorrow.

TK, because he's a legend. Oriol, because he hasn't won in like 10 years. Ed, because SFR ending the crapwagon era with 2 wins in a row would be quite something. Tag, because that would be a priceless revenge on Sam Schmidt(and he hasn't won for quite a while too).

Anyway, with 34 cars, a very weird grid, and two championship contenders trying to hit the front as soon as possible, we might well have a cracker of a race.

Shit that was a big one. Hopefully everyone is fine but there was one that flew a fecking huge distance.

Sickening crash already. Someone seems hurt...

Dario's title already, sad way to win it though.