Power nurses tires to the finish, edges Alexander Rossi and closes the book on 22 years of IndyCar racing on Belle Isle in Detroit.
- ‘Spider-Man’ Has Soft Spot for Belle Isle
- For Rossi, the Future is Now
- Turn Out the Lights, the Party’s Over
It seems only fitting that 22 years of IndyCar racing on Belle Isle in Detroit came down to one final second of drama.
Team Penske’s Will Power crossed the finish line—and closed the latest chapter of motorsports history in the Motor City—1. 0027 seconds ahead of a hard-charging Alexander Rossi at the Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix Presented by Lear on Sunday.
Scott Dixon finished third to complete the podium at the NTT IndyCar Series race.
The race was quite simply a battle of race strategies as Power, who started 16th on the grid, went with a two-stop strategy and was able to baby his intermediate tires the final 20 laps to the finish line. Rossi started 11th for Andretti Autosport and went with a three-stop strategy that left him with fresher tires at the end.
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At the conclusion of the final pit stops, Power held a 16-second advantage with 20 laps remaining in the 70-lap race. Rossi chipped away at the margin over those final laps and was closing quickly at the checkered flag, only to come up just short.
“The last stint, it was good because it had such a gap,” Power said. “On the out lap, it was really nice. You can do a bit of damage on the cold tires. I was really cognizant of not slipping the tire too much. Then just got in a rhythm and drove it really straight, really straight. Can be very quick that way. Just a certain way you can drive when tires are like that.”
The win was the 41st of Power’s career and moved him into first place in the season points standings, three points clear of Indianapolis 500 winner Marcus Ericsson.
“It was hard at the end,” Rossi said. “Obviously, with the three-stop we knew it was just basically a qualifying run for 70 laps type of thing. The team did an amazing job and the NAPA AutoNation Honda was fantastic. We thought we had a car to be in the front yesterday, and circumstances prevented that. It’s good to get the car where it should have been and have a shot there at the end.
Will Power comes out of the pits at Belle Isle
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“Obviously Will did a fantastic job on a tire that has a lot of falloff at the end. We did our best to kind of manage the pace and go for it at the end, but we were probably a lap short.”
For Dixon, the podium was the 128th for his career and the top-five finish was the 186th. Both totals are second behind only Mario Andretti.
The race was caution-free for the first time for and IndyCar race on Belle Isle. It also featured a record 148 passes for position, 59 in the top-10 and 23 in the top-5.
“Yes, I was surprise,” said Power about the caution-free race. “But then, you know, we have races like that. Such a good field, like there’s no bad drivers. There’s no drivers that shouldn’t be there. I mean, they’re all good. It doesn’t surprise me it was a mistake-free race.”
At least it was for Will Power.
Helio Castroneves visits his 2001 race-winning car on Belle Isle.
Mike Pryson
‘Spider-Man’ Has Soft Spot for Belle Isle
Helio Castroneves will always have a soft spot in his heart for the Belle Isle circuit. It was there, in 2000 that Castroneves opened the 22-year-run of Indy car racing on Belle Isle scored his first IndyCar victory.
The 2000 race on the island was also the race that gave birth to the IndyCar’s version of Spider-Man, as Castroneves climbed the catchfence for the first time to celebrate that win with the fans.
Castroneves spent time on Sunday before the final race on Belle Isle in a Legacy Tent display featuring his 2001 Team Penske race-winning car from Belle Isle.
Helio Castroneves climbed the fence three times after IndyCar wins on Belle Isle.
JEFF KOWALSKYGetty Images
“I always dream about it, believe it or not,” Castroneves told Autoweek when asked what it feels like to now be thought of as the face of current-day IndyCar. “I feel that once you love what you do, and do it the right way and you’re surrounded by great people, things start coming to a nice area. If you talk about Mario Andretti, Rick Mears, A.J. Foyt, Al Unser Sr.—all these incredible legends in the their time—they were the same way. I’m so glad that I’m able to at least make a difference and hope I inspire young kids and the younger generation to come up and do the same.”
Castroneves, 47, shows no signs of slowing down. He qualified fourth for Sunday’s race, but was forced to the sidelines after just 21 laps due to an electrical malfunction in the steering wheel.
“It’s great that we’re still doing it,” Castroneves said. “When you have passion, you can go as long as you want. At the end of the day, it’s great to be back for the last race on Belle Isle. I didn’t want to see that, but with every beginning there is an end, and this is the end for them.”
Castroneves won three times on Belle Isle. Next year, he hopes to usher in a new era of IndyCar racing in the Motor City when the race moves to the downtown streets. He says he’s currently working on a racing deal that will keep in in IndyCar in 2023.
“The future is whatever it’s going to be,” he said. “But as of right now, this is the only thing that I know how to do well, so we’ll keep it going.”
Alexander Rossi finished a close second on Belle Isle to cap a crazy week for the Andretti Autosport driver.
Penske Entertainment/Joe Skibinksi
For Rossi, the Future is Now
Alexander Rossi capped what for him was a crazy week with his runner-up finish in Detroit.
Over the past week, it was announced that Rossi would be leaving Andretti Autosport at season’s end. Then, came the announcement that he was taking talents to McLaren’s IndyCar team next year.
Rossi said his strong finish and best race of the season was not a message to either his current or future team.
“The announcement doesn’t really matter to me personally,” Rossi said. “We’re here in 2022, trying to do a job for Andretti Autosport and Honda and all of our partners. That’s the main focus.”
Race winner Will Power frolics in the Scott Fountain on Belle Isle following his race win on Sunday.
Icon SportswireGetty Images
Turn Out the Lights, the Party’s Over
IndyCar drivers completed the final laps of racing on Belle Isle Park on Sunday. Indy-style racing started on the island in 1992. No Grand Prix was held on the island from 2002-06, 09-11 and in 2020.
Scott Dixon, Helio Castroneves and Sunday’s winner Will Power each won three times.
“Getting in the fountain was really rewarding,” said Power about the tradition at Belle Isle of winners jumping into the water after the race. “I can’t believe it actually happened because I knew it was the last race, what are the chances. I lost the chance last year. I thought the chance of it happening again is pretty slim, especially after qualifying.
“You can never give up. Never give up.”
Keyword: Team Penske's Will Power Turns Out the Lights on Belle Isle with Win in IndyCar Finale