IndyCar Season Review: Mario Moraes

Mario Moraes hit a wall in more ways than one in the 2010 IZOD IndyCar Series season.

After a stretch of strong finishes to close out the 2009 season, Moraes looked like an up-and-coming hot property in IndyCar with KV Racing Technology. In fact, before the season, many were saying that KV had, as a team, surpassed many others in the garage, and were poised for a strong run with Moraes this year.

But Moraes was initially not brought back by KVRT, replaced in the team's flagship No. 5 with ex-Formula 1 pilot Takuma Sato. Much of Moraes' family backing, coming from of Brazilian conglomerate Votorantim, was lost with the death of his father in the middle of the 2009 season. When the team finally brought him back in a third car, the No. 32, it was only days before the season opening race at Sao Paulo.

Moraes had not tested an IndyCar all offseason, and his rust showed in a spectacular first-corner wreck. As the field kicked up dust and bunched in the first corner, Moraes misjudged the braking zone, lost control of his car, and landed on top of Marco Andretti.

That event proved an omen for the rest of the season. Moraes wrecked six times this year, up from only four in 2009. Five of the six came in the first half of the season, all but killing any chances of a solid season.

Notable incidents included wrecks on the fourth day of practice for the Indianapolis 500; an accident 17 laps into that race; a frontstretch crash with Helio Castroneves at Texas; and a hard crash at Motegi that sent Moraes to the hospital with back pain. It was part of a nightmare season for KV, which saw its three full-time cars fail to finish 21 times in a combined 51 starts.

His season-ending DNF at Homestead, coming off the hard Motegi wreck, was attributed to mechanical failure, not a surprise given the amount of damages the entire KVRT team accrued over the course of the year. The final two races were especially disappointing given that Moraes had finished fifth and seventh in the same two events last year.

Worse, his third place finish at Chicagoland in 2009 would remain his career-best performance. In 2010, Moraes could muster no better than a fifth place finish at Watkins Glen, though he also had top-10s at Long Beach, Kansas, and Edmonton. It all amounted to a 15th place run in the final standings, down one position and 17 points from last season.

It was far from the 2010 season that many were expecting Moraes to have. Granted, it wasn't his fault that he wasn't able to test before the season, that his team may have over-expanded, or that his teammates had similar problems staying out of the garage on race day. Nonetheless, had Moraes continued progressing as in 2009, a top-10 finish in points should have been attainable.

IndyCar Season Review: Helio Castroneves

Point for point, 2010 was one of Helio Castroneves' best IZOD IndyCar Series seasons of all time.

Scoring 531 points in the series' 17 races, Castroneves took three victories to finish fourth in the series championship. It was the fourth top five in the standings that Castroneves has taken in the past five years, and it came without missing the season opener as he did last year. He also reduced his DNF count from four in 2009 to two this season, while matching his two poles from last season as well.

The season started off strong for Castroneves, as he took top-10 finishes in all four road and street course races to open the season. After teammate Will Power won in Sao Paulo and St. Petersburg, Castroneves kept up Team Penske's momentum when he scored the victory in the inaugural Indy Grand Prix of Alabama. Though he was 42 points out of the lead heading into the first oval stretch, Castroneves maintained second in points at that time.

From there, things got a little less consistent. Castroneves' highlights of the second quarter of the season were his fourth career Indianapolis 500 pole and a runner-up finish at Iowa, but a DNF at Texas in a wreck with Mario Moraes didn't help his cause.

A finish on the edge of the top 10 in Watkins Glen and an accident with Vitor Meira in Toronto dropped him all the way to sixth in points heading into Edmonton, a race in which he had finished second the previous two years. Castroneves was poised to improve on that personal best until a blocking penalty dropped him to tenth in the order. A heated Castroneves lost his cool, grabbing IndyCar officials post-race in his frustration.

From there, Castroneves began to regain his stride, though it was too little too late.

115 points out of the lead with six races to go, he would have needed to finish in the top four in each of the final six races while all of his rivals struggled tremendously. A refocused Castroneves did his part, finishing no worse than sixth in the final six races, but it would not even be close to enough.

The highlights of Castroneves' late season run included consecutive wins at Kentucky and Motegi. The Kentucky win came to the surprise of most, as Ed Carpenter had been dominating the race; Castroneves used an alternate fuel strategy and low throttle levels in the race's closing laps to coast to the win as everybody else pitted. In Japan, he led 153 of the race's 200 laps, including a stretch from lap 118 to the finish.

Coming into Homestead, Castroneves had a shot at securing third place in the standings, but a fifth place finish was not enough to maintain the spot, as Scott Dixon passed him for the spot with his victory.

2010 wasn't Castroneves' finest season of all time, especially compared to his DNF-free tear in 2008, but worked out to be one of his most consistent seasons since road courses were added to the series. Though only the second-best Penske driver this year, Castroneves proved that he remains one of the series' top drivers, even after over a decade in the sport.

IndyCar Race Review: Indy Japan 300

Helio Castroneves led 153 out of 200 laps from the pole to take the victory in the Indy Japan 300 at Twin Ring Motegi on Sunday.

It was Castroneves' third IZOD IndyCar Series win of the 2010 season, coming in the series' penultimate race. It was also Castroneves' second consecutive win, after taking the honors at Kentucky. The Brazilian Team Penske driver also won at Barber Motorsports Park earlier this year.

Castroneves won his 25th major American open-wheel race in dominant fashion, handily beating his Chip Ganassi Racing rival Dario Franchitti and Penske teammate Will Power. Ryan Briscoe and 2008 winner Danica Patrick rounded out the top five, with defending race winner Scott Dixon directly behind in sixth.

Franchitti, who clinched the A.J. Foyt Oval Championship in this race by 16 points over Franchitti, positioned himself to make a run for his second consecutive IndyCar title at Homestead in two weeks. Franchitti now trails Power by a mere 12 points in the overall standings with only the Homestead-Miami Speedway race to go.

The race was hindered in the final stages by a 19-lap caution to clean up debris spread by a major crash in turn two. Alex Lloyd dragged parts down the backstretch before finally coming to rest a long way from where he initially hit the wall. It was Lloyd's second caution of the day, after an early race caution had already cost him 16 laps in repairs.

Lloyd was not the only driver to make friends with the wall in Japan on the weekend of Friendship Day. Bertrand Baguette received terminal damage on the second lap of the race, while Mario Moraes only completed a third of the distance before hitting the wall. Moraes was removed from his car and put on a stretcher as he complained of back pain.

Three Japanese drivers took part in the race: Takuma Sato, Hideki Mutoh, and American-born Roger Yasukawa. All three completed the race; Sato finished 12th, Mutoh came home 14th, and Yasukawa placed 20th, five laps down. It was Sato's first IndyCar race in front of his home fans, Mutoh's first race in front of his father, and Yasukawa's first race of the season after previously spotting for Sato during oval races.

Only three drivers managed to lead laps during the event: Castroneves, Briscoe, and Raphael Matos, who inherited the lead by not pitting during the Moraes caution. However, an alternate pit strategy early did Matos no good later on, as he fell to 18th, the last car on the lead lap. Most drivers ended up finishing close to their starting positions, with Patrick (12th to 5th), Graham Rahal (16th to 8th), and Alex Tagliani (23rd to 13th) the three biggest gainers on the day.

The IZOD IndyCar Series will close out its 17-race schedule with the October 2 season finale at Homestead, the Cafes do Brazil 300. Franchitti took this race and the season championship with it last year.

IndyCar Race Preview: Indy Japan 300

With only two races remaining in the IZOD IndyCar Series season, a good starting position is key to establishing yourself out front for the duration of each event.

Team Penske took this philosophy to heart in qualifying for the Indy Japan 300, placing drivers Helio Castroneves, Ryan Briscoe, and Will Power in the first three starting positions.

Power, the championship leader will share the second row with Dario Franchitti, his closest championship rival. The two drivers are separated by a mere 17 points going into the final two races, by no means an insurmountable deficit.

Behind them, Andretti Autosport's top three drivers, Marco Andretti, Tony Kanaan, and Ryan Hunter-Reay, took the fifth through seventh starting spots. The KV Racing Technology cars of E.J. Viso and Japanese favorite Takuma Sato took eighth and 10th, respectively, with only Panther Racing's Dan Wheldon between them. Sato's recovery was a fine run considering he had suffered a practice incident earlier in the day.

Posting somewhat disappointing qualifying runs were Scott Dixon, who will line up 11th, and 2008 race winner Danica Patrick, who will start this year's running in 12th. But the field was competitive - 23 of the 25 drivers in the event qualified within one second of polesitter Castroneves, with the lone exceptions Simona de Silvestro and Milka Duno.

Time zones always make the logistics of the race interesting for the American fans at home. Qualifying took place at 3:40 PM local time, which translates to 2:40 AM Eastern time. Meanwhile, the race broadcast on Versus begins at 11:00 PM on Saturday night. Many fans, especially those on the east coast, will either have to DVR the event or alter their sleeping schedules to enjoy the race.

IndyCar History: Twin Ring Motegi

This weekend, the IZOD IndyCar Series makes its second and final trip outside of North America for the 2010 season. Teams have loaded their equipment up in crates for shipment to Japan, where they will run at the Twin Ring Motegi circuit in the Indy Japan 300, the series' penultimate race.

Motegi was built during a much different time for American open-wheel racing. Engine supplier Honda built it in 1997 as a way to attract the powerhouse CART series to learn more about their cars. It features two tracks: the only purpose-built superspeedway oval in all of Japan, and a road course built through and around the oval. The oval most closely resembles American track Darlington Raceway, as one of its corners is pushed in tighter than the others.

Though their entry into CART with Bobby Rahal in 1994 had proven unsuccessful, Honda were a championship-winning manufacturer by their third season, winning the 1996 championship with Jimmy Vasser and Chip Ganassi Racing. The success of Honda, as well as the entry of Japanese competitor Toyota, generated interest in a Japanese race for the CART series.

The first race at Motegi was held on March 28, 1998, between events at Homestead-Miami Speedway and the prestigious Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach. Honda driver Vasser took pole for the inaugural event, but Adrian Fernandez won in a Patrick Racing Reynard-Ford. Fernandez also took the victory in 1999.

For 2000, the race was moved to the middle of May, conflicting with the IRL and Indianapolis 500 time trials. Michael Andretti won the event that year, in his final season with longtime owners Newman/Haas Racing. The next season, ex-IRL champion Kenny Brack won the race driving for Team Rahal. This meant that the first four Japanese CART events were all taken by drivers in Fords.

2002 would prove no better. Bruno Junqueira won the race driving for Chip Ganassi Racing, but by this time the ex-Honda powerhouse had switched to rival Toyota power. The top Honda in the race, driven by Dario Franchitti, finished one lap down in third. A bright spot of the weekend was the strength of Tony Kanaan, whose Mo Nunn Racing Honda sat on the outside pole and led 72 laps, more than any other driver did in the race. Kanaan finished 15th, however, as his engine gave out after 121 laps.

2003 marked the debut of the Motegi event as an IndyCar event, switching allegiances as Honda left CART to join the less expensive IRL and once again compete in the Indianapolis 500. Toyota had Honda's number for much of the season; while Honda driver Gil de Ferran won the Indianapolis 500 with Team Penske, Toyota won the series title with Scott Dixon, and the Indy Japan 300 with Scott Sharp.

It would take seven years for a Honda to finally win a Motegi event, as Dan Wheldon took the victory from the pole. Hondas prepared by Andretti Green Racing finished 1-2, as Kanaan took second in the event. Since this groundbreaking victory, Hondas have never failed to win the Indy Japan 300 (although many of the past few seasons have featured only Honda as the engine manufacturer).

In 2005, the last year of multiple engine manufacturers in the IRL, Hondas took the top six spots at Motegi, a banner day for the manufacturer. Up to that point, her fourth-place finish at Motegi in 2005 was the best of Danica Patrick's young career.

2006 and 2007 saw wins by Helio Castroneves and Kanaan, respectively; Kanaan's was marked by a conservative fuel strategy that allowed him to win the race by drafting other cars since the start and coasting to the win as others had to pit.

2008 marked the first year of open-wheel reunification, but scheduling issues meant that not everybody in the IndyCar Series would be running at Motegi. Instead, the former Champ Car World Series teams would be in Long Beach, contesting that series' final event and sending off their Panoz-Cosworth machines in style. The IndyCar mainstays would head to Japan and contest the race.

Once again, fuel strategy was the name of the game, and once again, an Andretti Green car would take victory. This time, however, it was Patrick, scoring the first win by a female driver in major professional open-wheel racing. It remains her only career race win to date.

Last year the event was moved to September, yielding to the longer-established Long Beach event. It was the first time the event had been held any later than May 19. Scott Dixon won from the pole, followed by teammate Dario Franchitti, the two Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing machines of Graham Rahal and Oriol Servia, and Mario Moraes of KV Racing Technology. That race marks the last appearance of Servia in an open-wheel racecar to date.

Motegi races have also featured a number of Japanese drivers (or drivers of Japanese heritage) in one-off deals. Last year, Kosuke Matsuura made his first IndyCar start since Chicagoland in 2007, finishing 17th for Conquest Racing. Meanwhile, Japanese-American Roger Yasukawa frequently puts together one-race deals to drive at Motegi. He finished 14th in 2008 for what is now Team 3G, and 20th last year in a third car for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing. This year, he will take his talents to Conquest, alongside their lead driver, Bertrand Baguette.

This year's event will also feature the Motegi debut of another Japanese driver, KVRT's Takuma Sato. Sato spent the majority of eight seasons in Formula 1, all in cars powered by Honda. Sato will have a different spotter for the event, however, as Yasukawa has been serving as Sato's eye in the sky for the majority of the season while working on race deals.

Carpenter and Vision Return for Three

Chris Hagan, the sports anchor for Fox 59 in Indianapolis, has reported via his Twitter page that Ed Carpenter and Vision Racing will rejoin the IZOD IndyCar Series for the final three races of the season at Chicagoland, Kentucky, and Homestead.

The No. 20 Dallara-Honda will once again be sponsored by Fuzzy's Premium Vodka, who backed the team in this year's Indianapolis 500. That car, run in partnership with Panther Racing, finished a respectable 17th, only the third car a lap down. Professional golfer Fuzzy Zoeller, the founder of Fuzzy's Vodka, confirmed the news in an interview with Hagan at a charity golf tournament.

Carpenter has always been an oval specialist, the kind of driver that Vision Racing owner (and IndyCar founder) Tony George had in mind when he first founded his open-wheel series in 1994. Carpenter especially excels at short tracks, where his career average finish is 12.1, and mid-size speedways, where that number is 13.7.

It's no surprise, then, that Kentucky and Homestead are Carpenter's two best tracks, with average finishes of 9.3 and 10.6, respectively. Meanwhile, at Chicago, his average finish is a respectable 13.7, making that track his fourth-best oval, out of the ovals that IndyCar still races. In a combined 18 starts at the three tracks, Carpenter has three of his four career top five finishes and eight of his 27 career top 10s.

Last year, Carpenter scored respectable finishes at both Chicago and Homestead, coming home 6th and 12th, respectably. But Kentucky was the highlight of the small team's season, as the team came within .016 seconds of its first win, only to be nipped at the line by Ryan Briscoe.