2008 Detroit Indy Grand Prix

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Flag of the United States.svg 2008 Detroit Indy Grand Prix
Race details
16th round of the 2008 IndyCar Series season
Detroit Grand Prix on Belle Isle route.svg
DateAugust 31, 2008
Official name Detroit Indy Grand Prix presented by Firestone
Location Detroit Belle Isle street circuit
CourseTemporary street circuit
2.07 mi / 3.33 km
Distance87 laps
180.09 mi / 289.82 km
Scheduled Distance90 laps
186.30 mi / 299.82 km
WeatherTemperatures reaching up to 86 °F (30 °C); wind speeds up to 10.2 miles per hour (16.4 km/h) [1]
Pole position
Driver Flag of New Zealand.svg Scott Dixon  (Chip Ganassi Racing)
Time1:12.2861
DriverFlag placeholder.svg
Podium
First Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Justin Wilson  (Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing)
Second Flag of Brazil.svg Hélio Castroneves  (Team Penske)
Third Flag of Brazil.svg Tony Kanaan  (Andretti Green Racing)

The 2008 Detroit Indy Grand Prix presented by Firestone was an IndyCar Series race that was held on August 31, 2008 on the Raceway on Belle Isle in Detroit, Michigan. It was the sixteenth race of the 2008 IndyCar Series season. Originally scheduled to run over 90 laps, it was shortened to 87 laps due to 2-hour limit. The race was won by Justin Wilson for the Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing team. Hélio Castroneves finished second, and Tony Kanaan clinched third. [2] Wilson dedicated his win to actor Paul Newman, the ailing joint-owner of his team; [3] Newman died less than a month later. [4]

Contents

Scott Dixon claimed pole position for the race, and led through the first lap. Dixon and Castroneves, who had qualified second, pulled away from the pack, until the seventeenth lap, when a full-track caution was issued after an incident between Dan Wheldon and Jamie Camara. Dixon pitted under the yellow, but did so alone, granting the lead to Castroneves. [5] The Brazilian led the race until lap 72, other than a single lap during which Oriol Servià was leading during pit stops. [2] Late in the race, Wilson was challenging for the lead, and Castroneves was judged to have blocked the other driver, resulting in a penalty which allowed Wilson to take the lead. Despite a late push by Castroneves to pass Wilson, the rookie British driver maintained his position to claim victory. [6]

There were four cautions, totalling 11 laps during the race. It was Wilson's first career IndyCar win. Of the 25 drivers that started, 18 completed the race, three retired after contact, one retired with handling problems and three retired due to mechanical issues. [2]

Classification

Race results

PosNo.DriverTeamChassis/Engine/TiresLapsTime/RetiredGridLaps LedPoints 1
102 Justin Wilson (R) Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing Dallara/Honda/Firestone 872:00:10.761841550
23 Hélio Castroneves Team Penske Dallara/Honda/Firestone 87+4.405825343
311 Tony Kanaan Andretti Green Racing Dallara/Honda/Firestone 87+17.68158035
45 Oriol Servià KV Racing Technology Dallara/Honda/Firestone 87+26.54683132
59 Scott Dixon Chip Ganassi Racing Dallara/Honda/Firestone 87+27.718511830
617 Ryan Hunter-Reay Rahal Letterman Racing Dallara/Honda/Firestone 87+28.26887028
718 Bruno Junqueira Dale Coyne Racing Dallara/Honda/Firestone 87+28.681524026
88 Will Power (R) KV Racing Technology Dallara/Honda/Firestone 87+28.681512024
96 Ryan Briscoe Team Penske Dallara/Honda/Firestone 87+35.52445022
102 A. J. Foyt IV Vision Racing Dallara/Honda/Firestone 87+38.104017020
1127 Hideki Mutoh (R) Andretti Green Racing Dallara/Honda/Firestone 87+38.381116019
1214 Darren Manning A. J. Foyt Racing Dallara/Honda/Firestone 87+44.666215018
1306 Graham Rahal (R) Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing Dallara/Honda/Firestone 87+47.80286017
1420 Ed Carpenter Vision Racing Dallara/Honda/Firestone 87+1:01.277120016
1519 Mario Moraes Dale Coyne Racing Dallara/Honda/Firestone 86+1 Lap19015
167 Danica Patrick Andretti Green Racing Dallara/Honda/Firestone 86+1 Lap10014
174 Vítor Meira Panther Racing Dallara/Honda/Firestone 83+4 Laps14013
1826 Marco Andretti Andretti Green Racing Dallara/Honda/Firestone 81Mechanical13012
1915 Buddy Rice Dreyer & Reinbold Racing Dallara/Honda/Firestone 76Mechanical18012
2010 Dan Wheldon Chip Ganassi Racing Dallara/Honda/Firestone 64Contact11012
2112 Tomas Scheckter Luczo Dragon Racing Dallara/Honda/Firestone 56+31 Laps26012
2236 Alex Tagliani Conquest Racing Dallara/Honda/Firestone 54Mechanical21012
2323 Milka Duno Dreyer & Reinbold Racing Dallara/Honda/Firestone 46Mechanical23012
2433 E. J. Viso HVM Racing Dallara/Honda/Firestone 32Contact9012
2534 Jaime Camara (R) Conquest Racing Dallara/Honda/Firestone 16Contact22010
2625 Marty Roth Roth Racing Dallara/Honda/Firestone 0DNS2505

Source: Racing-Reference [2]

Standings after the race

Drivers' Championship
PosDriverPoints
1 Scott Dixon 606
2 Helio Castroneves 576
3 Tony Kanaan 481
4 Dan Wheldon 464
5 Ryan Briscoe 412
Source: Racing-Reference [2]

References

  1. "2008 Detroit Indy Grand Prix weather information". Old Farmers' Almanac. Retrieved September 6, 2018.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 "2008 Detroit Indy Grand Prix Presented by Firestone". Racing-Reference. USA Today Sports Media Group. Retrieved July 1, 2012.
  3. Householder, Mike (September 1, 2008). "Rookie Justin Wilson wins Detroit Indy Grand Prix". The New York Times . Retrieved July 1, 2012.
  4. "Film star Paul Newman dead at 83". Reuters . September 27, 2008. Retrieved June 9, 2012.
  5. Abuelsamid, Sam (September 1, 2008). "Detroit Grand Prix 2008: The IndyCars take to the track". Autoblog. Retrieved July 1, 2012.
  6. Horsley, Carlie (September 1, 2008). "IndyCar: Maiden win for Wilson". SkySports . Retrieved June 9, 2012.
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