How it started…
Who’s driving this weekend:
Points Standings |
Starting grid |
|||||||
| Position | Driver | Points | Position |
Driver |
||||
| 1 | Juan Pablo Montoya | 51 | 1 | Juan Pablo Montoya | ||||
| 2 | Will Power | 44 | 2 | Will Power | ||||
| 3 | Tony Kanaan | 35 | 3 | Tony Kanaan | ||||
| 4 | Helio Castroneves | 33 | 4 | Helio Castroneves | ||||
| 5 | Simon Pagenaud | 31 | 5 | Simon Pagenaud | ||||
| 6 | Sebastien Bourdais | 28 | 6 | Sebastien Bourdais | ||||
| 7 | Ryan Hunter-Reay | 26 | 7 | Ryan Hunter-Reay | ||||
| 8 | Jack Hawksworth | 25 | 8 | Jack Hawksworth | ||||
| 9 | Luca Filippi | 22 | 9 | Luca Filippi | ||||
| 10 | Marco Andretti | 20 | 10 | Marco Andretti | ||||
| 11 | Graham Rahal | 19 | 11 | Graham Rahal | ||||
| 12 | Josef Newgarden | 18 | 12 | Josef Newgarden | ||||
| 13 | Takuma Sato | 17 | 13 | Takuma Sato | ||||
| 14 | Carlos Munoz | 16 | 14 | Carlos Munoz | ||||
| 15 | Scott Dixon | 15 | 15 | Scott Dixon | ||||
| 16 | James Hinchcliffe | 14 | 16 | James Hinchcliffe | ||||
| 17 | Gabby Chavez (R) | 13 | 17 | Gabby Chavez (R) | ||||
| 18 | Simona de Silvestro | 12 | 18 | Simona de Silvestro | ||||
| 19 | Sage Karam | 11 | 19 | Sage Karam | ||||
| 20 | Stefano Coletti | 10 | 20 | Stefano Coletti | ||||
| 21 | Charlie Kimball | 9 | 21 | Charlie Kimball | ||||
| 22 | James Jakes | 8 | 22 | James Jakes | ||||
| 23 | Francesco Dracone | 7 | 23 | Francesco Dracone | ||||
| 24 | Carlos Huertas | 6 | 24 | Carlos Huertas | ||||
| (Grid set by points due to rainout) | ||||||||
…how it ended…
Race results |
Points standings |
||||||
| Position | Driver | Position | Driver |
Points |
|||
| 1 | James Hinchcliffe | 1 | Juan Pablo Montoya | 84 | |||
| 2 | Helio Castroneves | 2 | Helio Castroneves | 74 | |||
| 3 | James Jakes | 3 | Will Power | 70 | |||
| 4 | Simona de Silvestro | 4 | James Hinchcliffe | 65 | |||
| 5 | Juan Pablo Montoya | 5 | Tony Kanaan | 63 | |||
| 6 | Tony Kanaan | 6 | Simona de Silvestro | 44 | |||
| 7 | Will Power | 7 | James Jakes | 43 | |||
| 8 | Graham Rahal | 8 | Graham Rahal | 43 | |||
| 9 | Josef Newgarden | 9 | Luca Filippi | 42 | |||
| 10 | Luca Filippi | 10 | Simon Pagenaud | 41 | |||
| 11 | Scott Dixon | 11 | Josef Newgarden | 40 | |||
| 12 | Carlos Munoz | 12 | Sebastien Bourdais | 37 | |||
| 13 | Marco Andretti | 13 | Ryan Hunter-Reay | 37 | |||
| 14 | Charlie Kimball | 14 | Marco Andretti | 37 | |||
| 15 | Gabby Chavez (R) | 15 | Scott Dixon | 34 | |||
| 16 | Carlos Huertas | 16 | Carlos Munoz | 34 | |||
| 17 | Stefano Coletti (R) | 17 | Jack Hawksworth | 31 | |||
| 18 | Sage Karam (R) | 18 | Gabby Chavez (R) | 28 | |||
| 19 | Ryan Hunter-Reay | 19 | Charlie Kimball | 25 | |||
| 20 | Simon Pagenaud | 20 | Takuma Sato | 25 | |||
| 21 | Sebastien Bourdais | 21 | Stefano Coletti | 23 | |||
| 22 | Takuma Sato | 22 | Sage Karam | 23 | |||
| 23 | Francesco Dracone (R) | 23 | Carlos Huertas | 20 | |||
| 24 | Carlos Huertas | 24 | Francesco Dracone | 14 | |||
…and all the stuff in between…
Rain rue: First practice on Friday was fine, but the second practice was delayed by rain. Rain dogged everyone on Saturday as well, and brought qualifying to a halt.
Reversion rule: Since quails couldn’t be finished due to severe thunderstorms rolling in, the starting order reverted to entrant points. Montoya started on the pole with a passel of Penske cars at the sharp end of the grid.
Racing the rain: The race was mainly dry, but the rain-soaked track caused carnage, and more rain threatened in the distance, putting going the full distance in doubt. The race was a timed event due to many cautions colliding with the available TV window. It was a possibility that more rain would shorten the race even further, but the clouds held their contents until the end.
Royal (w)reck: On the last of a gazillion restarts, Simon Pagenaud, Ryan Hunter-Reay and Sebastien Bourdais ended up in a melee of flying cars and parts, bringing out yet another yellow that the race would finish under. Everyone walked away unhurt, thankfully.
Rockin’ results: James Hinchcliffe returned to the top of the podium after having a rough 2014. He was joined by Helio Castroneves (2nd) and team mate James Jakes (3rd) in the winner’s circle. Simona de Silvestro, a late addition to this race, finished 4th after not even testing on this track in the preseason like most of the rest of the field. A bit of a shakeup compared to the expected Penske domination. Onward to Long Beach!
