Good for the promoters and gushing TV commentators, bad for racing.
Josef Newgarden won the NTT IndyCar Series race at Texas Motor Speedway Saturday night after a bonehead move by Scott Dixon illuminated a late yellow light. The race was caution-free for more than the first half, until Zach Veach brushed the wall exiting Turn 2 on Lap 135. His Honda did an entertaining 360-degree spin but Veach kept it off the wall and came to a stop in Turn 3 with slight suspension damage and a flat tire.
The second caution occurred when James Hinchcliffe slid wide into the Turn 2 wall on Lap 219. The final exasperating yellow came when the cars of Scott Dixon and rookie Colton Herta touched while battling for third place in Turn 3 on Lap 229, sending both into the wall. It was clearly Dixon’s fault. Race Control did nothing.
The caution for the Dixon-Herta incident set up the shootout to the finish between Newgarden and Rossi. The 2019 championship leader held off Alexander Rossi by holding the line over the final 10 laps to capture the 600. Newgarden, in the No. 2 Fitzgerald USA Team Penske Chevrolet, won by 0.8164 of a second to collect his 13th career win, third this season and first on a super speedway.
The next IndyCar Series race is at Road America on Sunday, June 23. Live race coverage starts at noon ET on NBC and the INDYCAR Radio Network.
DXC TECHNOLOGY 600: Official race results
About Ken Zino
Ken Zino, editor and publisher of AutoInformed, is a versatile auto industry participant with global experience spanning decades in print and broadcast journalism, as well as social media. He has automobile testing, marketing, public relations and communications experience. He is past president of The International Motor Press Assn, the Detroit Press Club, founding member and first President of the Automotive Press Assn. He is a member of APA, IMPA and the Midwest Automotive Press Assn.
He also brings an historical perspective while citing their contemporary relevance of the work of legendary auto writers such as Ken Purdy, Jim Dunne or Jerry Flint, or writers such as Red Smith, Mark Twain, Thomas Jefferson – all to bring perspective to a chaotic automotive universe.
Above all, decades after he first drove a car, Zino still revels in the sound of the exhaust as the throttle is blipped during a downshift and the driver’s rush that occurs when the entry, apex and exit points of a turn are smoothly and swiftly crossed. It’s the beginning of a perfect lap.
AutoInformed has an editorial philosophy that loves transportation machines of all kinds while promoting critical thinking about the future use of cars and trucks.
Zino builds AutoInformed from his background in automotive journalism starting at Hearst Publishing in New York City on Motor and MotorTech Magazines and car testing where he reviewed hundreds of vehicles in his decade-long stint as the Detroit Bureau Chief of Road & Track magazine. Zino has also worked in Europe, and Asia – now the largest automotive market in the world with China at its center.
Josef Newgarden in Penske Chevrolet Wins Texas 600
Good for the promoters and gushing TV commentators, bad for racing.
Josef Newgarden won the NTT IndyCar Series race at Texas Motor Speedway Saturday night after a bonehead move by Scott Dixon illuminated a late yellow light. The race was caution-free for more than the first half, until Zach Veach brushed the wall exiting Turn 2 on Lap 135. His Honda did an entertaining 360-degree spin but Veach kept it off the wall and came to a stop in Turn 3 with slight suspension damage and a flat tire.
The second caution occurred when James Hinchcliffe slid wide into the Turn 2 wall on Lap 219. The final exasperating yellow came when the cars of Scott Dixon and rookie Colton Herta touched while battling for third place in Turn 3 on Lap 229, sending both into the wall. It was clearly Dixon’s fault. Race Control did nothing.
The caution for the Dixon-Herta incident set up the shootout to the finish between Newgarden and Rossi. The 2019 championship leader held off Alexander Rossi by holding the line over the final 10 laps to capture the 600. Newgarden, in the No. 2 Fitzgerald USA Team Penske Chevrolet, won by 0.8164 of a second to collect his 13th career win, third this season and first on a super speedway.
The next IndyCar Series race is at Road America on Sunday, June 23. Live race coverage starts at noon ET on NBC and the INDYCAR Radio Network.
DXC TECHNOLOGY 600: Official race results
About Ken Zino
Ken Zino, editor and publisher of AutoInformed, is a versatile auto industry participant with global experience spanning decades in print and broadcast journalism, as well as social media. He has automobile testing, marketing, public relations and communications experience. He is past president of The International Motor Press Assn, the Detroit Press Club, founding member and first President of the Automotive Press Assn. He is a member of APA, IMPA and the Midwest Automotive Press Assn. He also brings an historical perspective while citing their contemporary relevance of the work of legendary auto writers such as Ken Purdy, Jim Dunne or Jerry Flint, or writers such as Red Smith, Mark Twain, Thomas Jefferson – all to bring perspective to a chaotic automotive universe. Above all, decades after he first drove a car, Zino still revels in the sound of the exhaust as the throttle is blipped during a downshift and the driver’s rush that occurs when the entry, apex and exit points of a turn are smoothly and swiftly crossed. It’s the beginning of a perfect lap. AutoInformed has an editorial philosophy that loves transportation machines of all kinds while promoting critical thinking about the future use of cars and trucks. Zino builds AutoInformed from his background in automotive journalism starting at Hearst Publishing in New York City on Motor and MotorTech Magazines and car testing where he reviewed hundreds of vehicles in his decade-long stint as the Detroit Bureau Chief of Road & Track magazine. Zino has also worked in Europe, and Asia – now the largest automotive market in the world with China at its center.