2012 Indy Grand Prix of Alabama

The 2012 Indy Grand Prix of Alabama was the second race of the 2012 IndyCar Series season. The race was run on April 1, 2012 in Birmingham, Alabama, United States at Barber Motorsports Park.

2012 Alabama
Race details
2nd round of the 2012 IndyCar Series season
DateApril 1, 2012
Official nameIndy Grand Prix of Alabama
LocationBarber Motorsports Park
Birmingham, Alabama
CourseRoad Course
2.38 mi / 3.83 km
Distance90 laps
214.2 mi / 344.7 km
WeatherTemperatures reaching up to 84.9 °F (29.4 °C); wind speeds up to 9.9 miles per hour (15.9 km/h)[1]
Pole position
DriverHélio Castroneves (Team Penske)
Time1:10.4768
Podium
FirstWill Power (Verizon Team Penske)
SecondScott Dixon (Target Chip Ganassi Racing)
ThirdHélio Castroneves (AAA Team Penske)

Report

Background

The first race of the 2012 IndyCar Series season in St. Petersburg, saw Hélio Castroneves capture his first victory since the 2010 season. Along with Castroneves, Scott Dixon and Ryan Briscoe were able to take advantage and lead throughout the race. Entering into the 2012 Indy Grand Prix of Alabama, Castroneves leads in the drivers' championship with 51 points, while Chevrolet leads in the manufacturers' championship.

Qualifying

There was very limited practice time during the week leading up to the Indy Grand Prix of Alabama. Friday's practice was cut short due to rain, while the practice on Saturday morning was canceled due to fog.[2] After qualifying was completed on Saturday morning, it was Hélio Castroneves who sat on the pole for the 2012 Indy Grand Prix of Alabama in the #3 AAA Insurance Chevy owned by Roger Penske. Andretti Autosport's driver James Hinchcliffe sat on the outside of the first row in the #27 GoDaddy.com car.[3]

Race

Scott Dixon led 38 laps and was leading on lap 66 when he made his final pit stop. A slow pit stop caused by trouble on the left rear tire, as well as traffic in the pit lane, allowed Will Power to pass him going into turn one. After all the leaders shuffled through their pit stops, Power took the lead, and held off Dixon over the final laps to win.

Classification

Starting grid
Row Inside Outside
1 3 Hélio Castroneves 27 James Hinchcliffe
2 9 Scott Dixon 14 Mike Conway
3 4 J.R. Hildebrand 11 Tony Kanaan
4 5 E.J. Viso 38 Graham Rahal
5 12 Will Power 77 Simon Pagenaud (R)
6 28 Ryan Hunter-Reay 2 Ryan Briscoe
7 26 Marco Andretti 8 Rubens Barrichello
8 67 Josef Newgarden (R) 15 Takuma Sato
9 7 Sebastian Bourdais 10 Dario Franchitti
10 18 Justin Wilson 19 James Jakes
11 78 Simona de Silvestro 83 Charlie Kimball
12 20 Ed Carpenter 6 Katherine Legge (R)
13 98 Alex Tagliani† 22 Oriol Servià†
† Tagliani and Servià penalised 10 places for changing engine

Race Results
Pos No. Driver Team Engine Laps Time/Retired Grid Laps Led Points1
1 12 Will Power Team Penske Chevrolet 90 2:01:40.1127 9 22 50
2 9 Scott Dixon Chip Ganassi Racing Honda 90 + 3.3709 3 38 42
3 3 Hélio Castroneves Team Penske Chevrolet 90 + 19.1150 1 28 36
4 38 Graham Rahal Chip Ganassi Racing Honda 90 + 19.3395 8 1 32
5 77 Simon Pagenaud (R) Schmidt Hamilton Motorsports Honda 90 + 20.1050 10 0 30
6 27 James Hinchcliffe Andretti Autosport Chevrolet 90 + 23.3093 2 1 28
7 14 Mike Conway A. J. Foyt Enterprises Honda 90 + 24.5552 4 0 26
8 8 Rubens Barrichello KV Racing Technology Chevrolet 90 + 25.4023 14 0 24
9 7 Sebastian Bourdais Dragon Racing Lotus 90 + 27.1815 17 0 22
10 10 Dario Franchitti Chip Ganassi Racing Honda 90 + 32.7377 18 0 20
11 26 Marco Andretti Andretti Autosport Chevrolet 90 + 33.5038 13 0 19
12 28 Ryan Hunter-Reay Andretti Autosport Chevrolet 90 +35.8730 11 0 18
13 22 Oriol Servià Dreyer & Reinbold Racing Lotus 90 + 37.8944 26 0 17
14 2 Ryan Briscoe Team Penske Chevrolet 90 + 41.6742 12 0 16
15 4 J.R. Hildebrand Panther Racing Chevrolet 90 + 44.5059 5 0 15
16 19 James Jakes Dale Coyne Racing Honda 90 + 54.5343 20 0 14
17 67 Josef Newgarden (R) Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing Honda 90 + 1:00.6182 15 0 13
18 5 E.J. Viso KV Racing Technology Chevrolet 89 + 1 lap 7 0 12
19 18 Justin Wilson Dale Coyne Racing Honda 89 + 1 lap 19 0 12
20 78 Simona de Silvestro HVM Racing Lotus 89 + 1 lap 21 0 12
21 11 Tony Kanaan KV Racing Technology Chevrolet 89 + 1 lap 6 0 12
22 20 Ed Carpenter Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet 88 + 2 laps 23 0 12
23 6 Katherine Legge (R) Dragon Racing Lotus 85 + 5 laps 24 0 12
24 15 Takuma Sato Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda 52 Mechanical 16 0 12
25 83 Charlie Kimball Chip Ganassi Racing Honda 45 Mechanical 22 0 10
26 98 Alex Tagliani Team Barracuda – BHA Lotus 0 Mechanical 25 0 10
Notes

1 Points include 1 point for pole position and 2 points for most laps led.

Standings after the race
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References
  1. Weather information for the 2012 Indy Grand Prix of Alabama at The Old Farmers' Almanac
  2. http://www.indycar.com/News/2012/March/3-30-IICS-Barber-practice-day.aspx
  3. http://www.indycar.com/News/2012/March/3-31-Barber-IICS-quals.aspx
Previous race:
2012 Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg		 IndyCar Series
2012 season		 Next race:
2012 Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach
Previous race:
2011 Indy Grand Prix of Alabama		 Indy Grand Prix of Alabama Next race:
2013 Indy Grand Prix of Alabama
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