Kanaan Dominates Demolition Derby at Richmond

What a difference a week makes. IRL officials were radiant following last Sunday’s Iowa Corn Indy 250. The passing was crisp and the number of accidents was fewer than expected.

Last night’s SunTrust Indy Challenge at Richmond shattered any and all momentum the IRL had gained heading into the second-half of the season.

There were nine cautions (102 laps), which tied a Richmond record from 2001. Before the guys got their act together, 89 of the first 163 laps were run under yellow. There were three multi-car accidents that led to accusations, finger-pointing, and some “meet me in the parking lot afterwards” jabber.

After the smoke cleared it was Tony Kanaan’s race to lose. The pole sitter led 166 laps en route to a four-second victory over fellow Brazilian Helio Castroneves. The win ended a winless streak that spanned nine races and dated back to Belle Isle in 2007.

Kanaan led the most laps, but rival teammate Marco Andretti had the superior car. Marco led 90 laps but an ill-timed caution sent him to the tail-end of the lead lap, all but ending his chances of a win. The Andretti brat settled for ninth-place.

Besides Kanaan’s domination and the demolition derby, there was some other out of the ordinary storylines that developed.

A potential IndyCar star was born last night. Conquest Racing rookie Jaime Camara started 24th but sliced and diced his way through the field and into contention. He was running 12th by lap 50 and found himself leading his first IndyCar race on lap 72.

Camara held the lead for 44 laps (35 were under caution) and hung with the leaders until his day came to a heartbreaking end on lap 218 when an accident ended his night.

It would be a shame to call Camara’s run last night a fluke, but it was just that. Attrition and some poor driving and decision making allowed the 27-year-old Brazilian to storm to the front. Granted, he remained competitive once he was with the lead pack, but inexperience trumped himself and sent him into the wall.

For the second week in a row, point leader Scott Dixon was an absolute non-factor. What is up with the Kiwi lately? Dixon did secure his seventh top-3 finish, but he failed to run up front for the second consecutive race. The last time that feat occurred was in July of 2006 when he failed to lead at Milwaukee and Michigan.

It is hard to argue with a third-place finish, but not when two fellow contenders finished ahead of him.

Winning at Richmond could prove to be a great omen for Kanaan: four of the seven race winners at Richmond have gone on to win the series title. Kanaan will be looking to make that five out of eight.

Do not worry Uncle Helio, I have not forgotten about you. Castroneves (AKA The Bridesmaid) picked up his fourth runner-up finish this season which inched him nine points closer to Dixon in the championship hunt. He now trails Dixon by 43 points.

Helio had the best run of the night. He started 18th but wasted no time in heading to the front. He cracked the top-10 on lap 42 and was running second by lap 70, but he was never able to overcome Kanaan or Andretti. Helio will have to wait yet another week to end his winless streak, which now stands at 24 races.

The biggest disappointment of the night has to be Vision Racing. A.J. Foyt IV was coming off a fifth-place finish at Iowa, but his night ended on lap 29 after an accident. Debris from Foyt’s car collected Vision teammate Ed Carpenter, which ended any shot of the Indy native grabbing his first win.

The IRL takes its show to Watkins Glen next week, which starts a string of three road courses in four weeks, which should favor the Champ Car transition drivers. Hopefully the IndyCar fan base will be better showcased in New York than it was at Richmond.

Did anybody notice the multitude of empty grandstands last night? Last night’s IndyCar race proved the IRL is light years behind NASCAR in terms of marketing, promotion, and popularity.

Also, what happened to the pre- and post-race shows? Last week at Iowa, there were rock-solid pre-race and post-race shows that included interviews with all the contenders. Last night the drivers were already strapped in when the broadcast started. Afterwards, Vince Welch briefly interviewed winner Kanaan just seconds before the credits rolled.

I guess the IRL marketing directors took the night off, but I digress.

Richmond is in the past and it is time to move forward. Here is what to watch for in the upcoming weeks:

Can Helio regain his winning form and snap his winless streak?

Can Kanaan build on his momentum and start a real championship push?

Can Dixon shake off two “dismal” races and get to the front where he is most comfortable?

See you at the Glen.