The Mazda Champ Car Grand Prix of Portland presented by Joe's Sports and Outdoor began and ended in historic fashion, with Justin Wilson leading away from Champ Car's first standing start and
Sebastien Bourdais leading the field home for Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing's 100th race win.
Every driver was able to get away at the start, setting the tone for a caution-free day - the first in Champ Car since Road America 2000 - which saw Bourdais# #1 McDonald's Panoz cruise to its third straight win after success in both Long Beach and Houston.
Polesitter Wilson stormed out to an early lead and continued to pull away, gaining a 15-second lead before the first round of pit-stops.
"I got a little too much wheelspin and Robert Doornbos got a clean jump," the Briton revealed, "I was just watching him alongside - when he braked, I braked. That made it pretty simple. I was on the inside and got through."
“I thought I had a better start than Justin," Doornbos agreed, "I proved it because I was alongside him - then I just got a bit too excited with a miss-shift and the advantage was gone. There was such a big fuss about the start approaching the weekend, but I think we proved that you can make normal starts without any hassle as long as you are just relaxed. I think the procedure went very well."
The best start, however, came from Will Power, who jumped from seventh to third after the Festival Curves - with Bourdais and Alex Tagliani hot on his heels. Further back, the returning Paul Tracy gained four positions on the first lap but spun in turn six third time around and spent the rest of the race on an alternative strategy as he tried to work his way back through the field, eventually finishing tenth.
