The NTT IndyCar Series has a tough challenge this weekend on Sunday (Aug. 25) at the last road course on the 2024 schedule for the BitNile.com Grand Prix of Portland.
How do they follow up the show under the lights at World Wide Technology Raceway at their next race?
While the next stop at Portland International Raceway (PIR) may not have the newfound multi-groove racing like Gateway, it still puts on one of the better road course races on the calendar. Just like Mid-Ohio and Road America, PIR has some of the most physical wheel-to-wheel action on a road course.
The 1.964-mile circuit has great passing opportunities and, with the hybrid added into the mix, will provide plenty of stories to watch.
Last Year
The 2023 IndyCar season was basically snatched from the rest of the contenders with Alex Palou’s victory in the Pacific Northwest. It was his second visit to victory lane there and sealed his second title with one race to spare.
It’s possible that he could repeat and do that all over again, but more on that later.
Turn 1
Most tracks have that dreaded funnel-of-doom turn on the first lap where all the cars transition from a massive blob of high-speed racing machines into an itty bitty space. At PIR that’s turn 1, which is a hard right-hander that should have had the Tums sponsorship well before Charlotte’s ROVAL. Perhaps Rolaids is in the market?
That turn could be all that some drivers have the misfortune of experiencing if a wreck were to occur. While the front might be where drivers want to start to avoid any mayhem, that’s not the case. Just this year Linus Lundqvist, a front-row starter at Road America, crashed with teammate Marcus Armstrong just a few turns after the green flew. Nowhere is safe for anybody.
Just last year, Kyle Kirkwood experienced the Dukes of Hazzard run-off venture when he was forced off in turn 1, having to fight to make up all that lost ground.
All this means is that danger lurks there, and it could bite any contender on Sunday.
Start Engraving
Look, I don’t know if a driver’s name gets chiseled or laser cut into the Astor Cup trophy, but let’s assume it does otherwise this metaphor is worthless.
Which might be how the rest of the field feels once the race concludes and Palou is still running at the end. If he does Palou-type things and takes whatever result he can get – and it may well be the win – then the championship will…
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