The second round of the newly-amalgamated IndyCar Series started in wet conditions after rain soaked the Florida street course minutes before the green flag dropped, and the scheduled 100-lap distance was eventually shortened to 83 laps to fit into the two-hour time limit. Castroneves finished second in the best of the Team Penske Dallara-Hondas, while polewinner Tony Kanaan finished third for race promoter Andretti Green Racing.
“It was so close," Castroneves said, "Team Penske did everything we could to get that car set up well but, in the slow section, the car was really pushing and I couldn't take a chance. I'm happy because this proves that good teams with good drivers can do well, and I'm extremely excited with the two series coming together. Second place is good - obviously I wanted to win the race, but I'll take it. In terms of the season championship, second is worth a lot.”
Kanaan pointed to strategic errors for his fall from first to third by the chequered flag, but maintained his record of never finishing outside the top three in any of the four races to have been staged on the streets of St Petersburg.
“Obviously, things did not work out for us today - when you take risks, some days it works out for you, some days it doesn't," he sighed, "We're not very happy with our calls today, but I support the team 100 per cent because we win together and we lose together. Finishing third is not bad, but I think there is a curse on me here at St Pete. I've finished on the podium every time I've been here, but not in the right spot.”
HVM Racing's Ernesto Viso and Conquest Racing's Enrique Bernoldi, both rookies with no IndyCar or Champ Car experience before last weekend's Homestead race, also gave the converts confidence by rounding out the top-five.
“We're very happy," Viso enthused, "We know that we have the potential to be up there at the road courses, so now we just have to work harder on the ovals. I think the rain affected everybody. It was just about trying to keep the car in one piece and be as smooth as possible. There are many races left, and now we know that we can be at the top. We were almost as quick as the rest - we need to work a little bit more on the road courses and we will be on the podium soon.”
Bernoldi, meanwhile, admitted that the conditions had played into his hands and was grateful for a chance to make up for his Homestead result.
“I've been racing in the wet and the dry and changing situations my whole life, so I was used to it," the Brazilian said, "I knew that, if I could stay on the track, I could have a good race and fight for a win. I think, after last week at the oval, where I was so bad, it's a big week for the whole team to be leading the race and to finish fifth. I've been out of open-wheel racing for more than two years, so it takes a while to get back [into it], but I think this was good practice. Two hours in these conditions is a big lift for us.”
Andretti Green newcomer Hideki Mutoh finished a career-best sixth, improving on his debut eighth at Chicagoland last season.
“I was glad when the race started but, soon after, I didn't really know what was happening since it was so hard to see," champion Dario Franchitti's replacement commented, "The team gave me a great car in the dry condition, so I did my best to manage the car in the rain. When it started to dry up, I was looking for an opportunity to move forward and was able to make a good pass in the end.”
KV Racing Technology pairing Oriol Servia and Will Power, and Rahal's NHLR team-mate Justin Wilson, underlined the Champ Car teams' potential on road and street courses by claiming seventh, eighth and ninth, with the third AGR entry of Danica Patrick rounding out the top ten.
