2020 Genesys 300

2020 Genesys 300

Race details
1 round of the 2020 IndyCar Series season
Date	June 6, 2020
Official name	Genesys 300
Location	Texas Motor Speedway
Course	Oval 1.5 mi / 2.4 km
Distance	200 laps 300 mi / 482.803 km
Pole position
Driver	Josef Newgarden  (Team Penske)
Time	24.0227 + 24.0351 = 48.0578
Fastest lap
Driver	Felix Rosenqvist  (Chip Ganassi Racing)
Time	24.1088 (on lap 189 of 200)
Podium
First	Scott Dixon  (Chip Ganassi Racing)
Second	Simon Pagenaud  (Team Penske)
Third	Josef Newgarden  (Team Penske)

The 2020 Genesys 300 was an IndyCar Series event that was held on June 6, 2020 at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth, Texas. It was the opening event of the 2020 IndyCar Series, due to race cancellations and postponements tied to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Background

On May 7, 2020, it was announced that the season would commence with a condensed, one-day event format at Texas Motor Speedway. Although intended to be run without spectators, Sonic Automotive (which owns the circuit under their Speedway Motorsports subsidiary) followed protocol in use at their NASCAR weekend at Charlotte by allowing owners and tenants of the Turn 2 Lone Star Towers office and condominium complex to have tickets and parking passes to watch the event from their units. Drivers and crew members were subject to social distancing and health screening protocols, and use of face coverings was mandated. Practice, qualifying and the race took place on the same day, ^[1] requiring it to be shortened from 248 laps or around 600 kilometres (370 miles), to 200 laps (300 miles). ^[2]

As the pandemic prevented Firestone from manufacturing new tire compounds for the race, existing compounds were used instead. The right-hand tires had originally been manufactured for tests at the track in 2019, simulating the effects of the new aeroscreen introduced to all vehicles for the 2020 season. The left-hand tires were originally manufactured for the 2019 Indianapolis 500. Due to these tire variances, Firestone and IndyCar required that these tires be replaced after 35 laps of use, with each car provided with nine sets of tires to use across the day. ^{[3] [4]}

Entry list

In May 2020, DragonSpeed revealed that it planned to prioritize an entry for the rescheduled Indianapolis 500, so that it could initially focus on its core European Le Mans Series operations. ^[5] On June 2, Carlin withdrew its entry for the race in the #31, citing economic impacts of the pandemic in Europe. ^[6]

Car No.	Driver Name	Owner/Team	Engine
1	Josef Newgarden  W	Team Penske	Chevrolet
4	Charlie Kimball	A. J. Foyt Enterprises	Chevrolet
5	Patricio O'Ward	Arrow McLaren SP	Chevrolet
7	Oliver Askew  R	Arrow McLaren SP	Chevrolet
8	Marcus Ericsson	Chip Ganassi Racing	Honda
9	Scott Dixon  W	Chip Ganassi Racing	Honda
10	Felix Rosenqvist	Chip Ganassi Racing	Honda
12	Will Power  W	Team Penske	Chevrolet
14	Tony Kanaan  W	A. J. Foyt Enterprises	Chevrolet
15	Graham Rahal  W	Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing	Honda
18	Santino Ferrucci	Dale Coyne Racing with Vasser-Sullivan	Honda
20	Ed Carpenter  W	Ed Carpenter Racing	Chevrolet
21	Rinus VeeKay  R	Ed Carpenter Racing	Chevrolet
22	Simon Pagenaud	Team Penske	Chevrolet
26	Zach Veach	Andretti Autosport	Honda
27	Alexander Rossi	Andretti Autosport	Honda
28	Ryan Hunter-Reay	Andretti Autosport	Honda
29	James Hinchcliffe	Andretti Autosport	Honda
30	Takuma Sato	Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing	Honda
55	Álex Palou  R	Dale Coyne Racing with Team Goh	Honda
59	Conor Daly	Carlin	Chevrolet
60	Jack Harvey	Meyer Shank Racing	Honda
88	Colton Herta	Andretti Harding Steinbrenner Autosport	Honda
98	Marco Andretti	Andretti Herta Autosport with Marco Andretti & Curb-Agajanian	Honda
Source: [7]

All cars ran a Dallara safety tub utilizing the IndyCar mandated Universal Aero Kit 18. All cars also utilized Firestone tires.

Withdrawn

Car No.	Driver Name	Owner/Team	Engine
31	Unnamed	Carlin	Chevrolet
81	Ben Hanley	DragonSpeed	Chevrolet

Key	Meaning
R	Rookie
W	Past winner

Full Results

Key	Meaning
R	Rookie
W	Past winner

Practice

Practice ran on race day from 12:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. CT

Pos	No.	Name	Lap Time	Avg. Speed
1	9	Scott Dixon  W	24.0006	215.995 mph (347.610 km/h)
2	88	Colton Herta	24.1689	214.491 mph (345.190 km/h)
3	5	Patricio O'Ward	24.1875	214.326 mph (344.924 km/h)
4	26	Zach Veach	24.1906	214.298 mph (344.879 km/h)
5	98	Marco Andretti	24.1945	214.264 mph (344.824 km/h)
6	30	Takuma Sato	24.2437	213.826 mph (344.120 km/h)
7	1	Josef Newgarden	24.3029	213.308 mph (343.286 km/h)
8	22	Simon Pagenaud	24.3128	213.221 mph (343.146 km/h)
9	15	Graham Rahal	24.3179	213.176 mph (343.074 km/h)
10	10	Felix Rosenqvist	24.3974	212.482 mph (341.957 km/h)
11	4	Charlie Kimball	24.4184	212.299 mph (341.662 km/h)
12	12	Will Power	24.4281	212.215 mph (341.527 km/h)
13	8	Marcus Ericsson	24.4408	212.104 mph (341.348 km/h)
14	55	Alex Palou  R	24.4446	212.071 mph (341.295 km/h)
15	7	Oliver Askew  R	24.4842	211.728 mph (340.743 km/h)
16	27	Alexander Rossi	24.4853	211.719 mph (340.729 km/h)
17	29	James Hinchcliffe	24.4979	211.610 mph (340.553 km/h)
18	20	Ed Carpenter	24.5508	211.154 mph (339.819 km/h)
19	14	Tony Kanaan	24.5521	211.143 mph (339.802 km/h)
20	59	Conor Daly	24.5561	211.108 mph (339.745 km/h)
21	28	Ryan Hunter-Reay	24.6094	210.617 mph (338.955 km/h)
22	18	Santino Ferrucci	24.6094	210.617 mph (338.955 km/h)
23	21	Rinus VeeKay  R	25.0564	209.893 mph (337.790 km/h)
24	60	Jack Harvey	25.2599	205.226 mph (330.279 km/h)
Source: [8]

Qualifying

Qualifying was run on race day starting at 5 p.m. (ET)

Pos	No.	Name	Lap 1 Time	Lap 2 Time	Total Time	Avg. Speed
1	1	Josef Newgarden	24.0227	24.0351	48.0578	215.740 mph (347.200 km/h)
2	9	Scott Dixon	24.0393	24.0413	48.0806	215.638 mph (347.036 km/h)
3	22	Simon Pagenaud	24.0507	24.0686	48.1193	215.464 mph (346.756 km/h)
4	28	Ryan Hunter-Reay	24.2439	24.1344	48.3783	214.311 mph (344.900 km/h)
5	26	Zach Veach	24.2942	24.1588	48.4530	213.981 mph (344.369 km/h)
6	12	Will Power	24.2708	24.1937	48.4645	213.930 mph (344.287 km/h)
7	15	Graham Rahal	24.2734	24.2029	48.4763	213.878 mph (344.203 km/h)
8	27	Alexander Rossi	24.2336	24.2855	48.5191	213.689 mph (343.899 km/h)
9	10	Felix Rosenqvist	24.3100	24.2384	48.5484	213.560 mph (343.692 km/h)
10	14	Tony Kanaan	24.3959	24.1917	48.5876	213.388 mph (343.415 km/h)
11	98	Marco Andretti	24.2882	24.3444	48.6326	213.190 mph (343.096 km/h)
12	4	Charlie Kimball	24.4347	24.2917	48.7264	212.780 mph (342.436 km/h)
13	20	Ed Carpenter	24.4153	24.3261	48.7414	212.714 mph (342.330 km/h)
14	88	Colton Herta	24.3807	24.3648	48.7455	212.697 mph (342.303 km/h)
15	29	James Hinchcliffe	24.3560	24.4109	48.7669	212.603 mph (342.151 km/h)
16	55	Álex Palou	24.5459	24.2437	48.7896	212.504 mph (341.992 km/h)
17	8	Marcus Ericsson	24.4232	24.4733	48.8965	212.040 mph (341.245 km/h)
18	5	Patricio O'Ward	24.4068	24.4959	48.9027	212.013 mph (341.202 km/h)
19	59	Conor Daly	24.5452	24.4934	49.0386	211.425 mph (340.256 km/h)
20	7	Oliver Askew	24.7092	24.4657	49.1749	210.839 mph (339.312 km/h)
21	60	Jack Harvey	25.2665	25.1499	50.4164	205.647 mph (330.957 km/h)
22	30	Takuma Sato	Wrecked during attempt		No Time	No Speed
23	21	Rinus VeeKay	Did not attempt		No Time	No Speed
24	18	Santino Ferrucci	Did not attempt		No Time	No Speed
Source: [9]

Race

Pos	No.	Driver	Team	Engine	Laps	Time/Status	Pit Stops	Grid	Laps Led	Pts. 1
1	9	Scott Dixon  W	Chip Ganassi Racing	Honda	200	1:38:37.7648	5	2	157	53
2	22	Simon Pagenaud	Team Penske	Chevrolet	200	+4.410	5	3		40
3	1	Josef Newgarden  W	Team Penske	Chevrolet	200	+5.806	5	1	41	37
4	26	Zach Veach	Andretti Autosport	Honda	200	+6.577	5	5	2	33
5	20	Ed Carpenter  W	Ed Carpenter Racing	Chevrolet	200	+6.948	5	13		30
6	59	Conor Daly	Carlin	Chevrolet	200	+7.576	5	19		28
7	88	Colton Herta	Andretti Harding Steinbrenner Autosport	Honda	200	+8.055	5	14		26
8	28	Ryan Hunter-Reay	Andretti Autosport	Honda	200	+8.310	6	4		24
9	7	Oliver Askew  R	Arrow McLaren SP	Chevrolet	200	+8.694	5	20		22
10	14	Tony Kanaan  W	A. J. Foyt Enterprises	Chevrolet	200	+8.963	5	10		20
11	4	Charlie Kimball	A. J. Foyt Enterprises	Chevrolet	199	Contact	6	12		19
12	5	Patricio O'Ward	Arrow McLaren SP	Chevrolet	199	+1 Lap	5	18		18
13	12	Will Power  W	Team Penske	Chevrolet	199	+1 Lap	5	6		17
14	98	Marco Andretti	Andretti Herta Autosport w/ Marco Andretti & Curb-Agajanian	Honda	199	+1 Lap	5	11		16
15	27	Alexander Rossi	Andretti Autosport	Honda	199	+1 Lap	7	8		15
16	60	Jack Harvey	Meyer Shank Racing	Honda	199	+1 Lap	5	21		14
17	15	Graham Rahal  W	Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing	Honda	198	+2 Laps	7	7		13
18	29	James Hinchcliffe	Andretti Autosport	Honda	198	+2 Laps	5	15		12
19	8	Marcus Ericsson	Chip Ganassi Racing	Honda	196	+4 Laps	6	17		11
20	10	Felix Rosenqvist	Chip Ganassi Racing	Honda	190	Contact	5	9		10
21	18	Santino Ferrucci	Dale Coyne Racing w/ Vasser-Sullivan	Honda	156	Mechanical	4	23		9
22	21	Rinus VeeKay  R	Ed Carpenter Racing	Chevrolet	36	Contact	1	24		8
23	55	Álex Palou  R	Dale Coyne Racing w/ Team Goh	Honda	36	Contact	1	16		7
DNS	30	Takuma Sato	Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing	Honda	0	Did Not Start, Qualifying crash	0	22		6
Source: [10]

Notes: ¹ Points include 1 point for leading at least 1 lap during a race, an additional 2 points for leading the most race laps, and 1 point for Pole Position.

Race statistics

Average speed:175.201 mph (281.959 km/h)

Lead changes: 5

Lap leader breakdown
From lap	To lap	Total laps	Driver
1	31	31	Josef Newgarden
32	34	3	Scott Dixon
35	36	2	Zach Veach
37	80	44	Scott Dixon
81	90	10	Josef Newgarden
91	200	110	Scott Dixon
Source: [11]

Cautions: 4 for 24 laps
From lap	To lap	Total laps	Reason
38	45	8	#21 (VeeKay), & #55 (Palou) accident backstretch
77	85	9	Debris
191	196	6	#10 (Rosenqvist) accident turn 2
200	200	1	#4 (Kimball) accident backstretch
Source: [12]

Championship standings after the race

Drivers' Championship standings Pos Driver Points 1 Scott Dixon 53 2 Simon Pagenaud 40 3 Josef Newgarden 37 4 Zach Veach 33 5 Ed Carpenter 30

Engine Manufacturer standings Pos Manufacturer Points 1 Honda 87 2 Chevrolet 76 Source: [13]

• Note: Only the top five positions are included.

Broadcasting

Television

Originally scheduled for NBCSN, it was announced on May 24 that the race would move to NBC, marking the first IndyCar Series event to air in primetime on network television in seven years. ^[14] With 1.285 million viewers, it was the most-watched IndyCar Series event outside of the Indianapolis 500 since 2016. ^[15]

The race was called at the track with Leigh Diffey doing play-by-play, Paul Tracy and Townsend Bell as analysts, and Marty Snider and Kelli Stavast reporting on pit lane. ^[16]

NBC
Booth Announcers	Pit/garage reporters
Announcer: Leigh Diffey Driver Expert: Townsend Bell Driver Expert: Paul Tracy	Marty Snider Kelli Stavast

Radio

The race was carried by the IndyCar Radio Network. Mark Jaynes served as the chief announcer from WIBC Radio studios along with Davey Hamilton as Driver Expert. Jake Query called the field down the backstretch from WIBC studios. Nick Yeoman was the sole pit reporter at the track. ^[17]

IndyCar Radio Network
Booth Announcers	Turn Reporters	Pit/garage reporters
Chief Announcer: Mark Jaynes Driver Expert: Davey Hamilton	Backstretch: Jake Query	Nick Yeoman

References

1. Ryan, Nate (May 7, 2020). "IndyCar will open 2020 season at Texas without fans in one-day event". Motorsports on NBC. NBC Sports . Retrieved May 8, 2020.
2. "NTT IndyCar Series Season Kicks Off June 6 at Texas Motor Speedway". IndyCar Series . May 7, 2020. Retrieved May 8, 2020.
3. Barnes, Joey (June 3, 2020). "Firestone-Mandated Tire Restrictions Add Wrinkle to NTT IndyCar Series Opener at Texas". Autoweek. Retrieved June 13, 2020.
4. "Tire stint limit implemented for IndyCar's Texas return". RACER. May 27, 2020. Retrieved June 13, 2020.
5. "DragonSpeed reveals revised plans for IndyCar, IMSA, ELMS". us.motorsport.com. Retrieved June 13, 2020.
6. "Carlin's No. 31 Chevy parked for Texas opener". RACER. June 2, 2020. Retrieved June 13, 2020.
7. @TXMotorSpeedway (June 3, 2020). "Y'all, we have an entry list for Saturday's #Genesys300!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
8. "Results".
9. "Results".
10. "Results".
11. "Race Results".
12. "Race Results".
13. "Home". indycar.com.
14. Ramos, Dino-Ray (May 24, 2020). "NTT Indycar Series Genesys 300 Races To NBC Primetime". Deadline. Retrieved May 25, 2020.
15. Brown, Nathan. "NBC delivers IndyCar's most-watched non-Indy 500 race since 2016 in Saturday's season-opener". The Indianapolis Star. Retrieved June 13, 2020.
16. "Texas IndyCar opener shifts to NBC". RACER. May 24, 2020. Retrieved June 13, 2020.
17. Source: IndyCar Radio Broadcast

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