admin | 07 July, 2008 08:09
Ryan Hunter-Reay scored his first IndyCar victory in 16 starts -- and the first for Rahal Letterman Racing since August 2004 -- by holding off Darren Manning by 2.4 seconds to win the Camping World Grand Prix at Watkins Glen Sunday.
Hunter-Reay passed Manning with 9 laps remaining, then kept Manning and Tony Kanaan at bay for the win. His previous best finish was a 6th at the Indy 500 this year.
He benefitted greatly from a late-race gaffe by none other than the IndyCar points leader Scott Dixon. Dixon was running second to Manning, with polesitter Ryan Briscoe right behind him during a caution, when Dixon spun out and Briscoe rammed the rear of his car. Both had to pit for repairs, while Hunter-Reay eluded the debris and set off after Manning.
"I was a complete idiot," said Dixon later, who quickly apologized to Briscoe. "I was just trying to burn the front tires up a bit and I got too aggressive. I feel more down for Ryan and his boys."
Despite the mistake Dixon, who finished 11th, still managed to up his points lead to 48 over Helio Castroneves, who started from the rear of the field and finished 16th.
There were two other notable driving blunders. Exiting her pit after a stop, Danica Patrick burned rubber, lost control of her car and very nearly collected several members of the Target Chip Ganassi pit crew.
Later, Vitor Meira pulled out of line to let E. J. Viso pass him in a corner, then was immediately rewarded for his kindness when Viso cut him off, whacked his car's front end and sent Meira into a wall.
The fun resumes this Saturday, July 12 at Nashville Superspeedway for the Firestone Indy 200. ESPN will televise the race live at 8 p.m. E.T.
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