Round Three of the IndyCar Series at St. Petersburg
source: Max d'Orsonnens
When the Indy cars take to the track this weekend in St. Petersburg, Florida,
the Indy Racing League Series will write a page of motor racing history as it
runs its first-ever non-oval track event. After completing 85,724 consecutive
left hand turns, the next official turn at the Honda Grand Prix of St.
Petersburg will see the cars turning right for the first time on the 14-turn,
2.8968-kilometer temporary street circuit. Red Bull Cheever Racing driver
Patrick Carpentier will be one of two current IndyCar Series competitors with
experience on the Albert Whitted Municipal Airport temporary course.
But this experience alone will not make Patrick Carpentier one of the favorites
to win this first street course event. Late Wednesday evening, the Canadian
driver was still feeling the aftershock of his encounter with the Turn 2 wall at
Phoenix two weeks ago. ''I went to see a doctor because I was still feeling pain
on the left side,'' Carpentier said. ''He snapped one of my ribs back into place
and that was very painful. I had one rib jammed on top of the other, and every
time I made a move it would hurt so much that at one point I thought that I
would have to skip this event. Fortunately, it feels much better now and I'm
ready to go. You can always endure the pain on an oval, but left and right turns
on a street course are another matter. I have sweet and sour memories of the St.
Petersburg track where I finished 8th in 2003. I was running second behind my
teammate Paul Tracy, but coming out of the pits on cold tires, I hit a bump and
made contact with the tire wall. Fortunately, it was a light hit and the team
changed the nose cone. I lost two laps but I was able to finish the race. I
guess I was too eager and it cost me a podium finish.''
''To be successful here, we need to have a car that is well balanced over the
curbs. The track is quite rough and you also need to have a stable car over the
bumps. Brakes will be an issue for everyone on this track. I will have to work
very closely with the team this weekend. I know the track but this will be a new
experience for Red Bull Cheever Racing. Coming from Formula One, Henri Durand,
the team technical director, has plenty of experience on road courses, and will
be a key player this weekend.''