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| · 2012 Germany GP: MotoGP Race Results - Pedrosa, Honda Win! (Jul 8, 2012)
· 2012 Toronto: IndyCar Race Results - Hunter-Reay, Chevrolet Win! (Jul 8, 2012)
· 2012 British GP (Silverstone): Formula One (F1) Race Results - Webber, Red Bull Win! (Jul 8, 2012)
· 2012 Le Mans: Lime Rock Results - What A Comeback, Muscle Milk Wins! (Jul 8, 2012)
· 2012 Daytona II (Coke Zero 400): NASCAR Sprint Cup Race Results - Stewart, Chevrolet Win! (Jul 8, 2012)
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2012 Toronto: KV Racing IndyCar Race Recap
KV Racing Technology driver Tony Kanaan had to overcome adversity to finish fourth today in the Honda Indy Toronto on the 1.75-mile, 11-turn temporary street circuit at Exhibition Place in Toronto, Canada. Teammate Rubens Barrichello placed 11th while E. J. Viso, the third of the KVRT trio, had a mechanical problem and finished 20th.
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Kanaan, in the No. 11 GEICO | MOUSER ELECTRONICS – KV Racing Technology Chevrolet/Firestone entry, qualified 18th, but due to a penalty assessed to another driver, started 17th.
From the drop of the green flag Kanaan was on the move and by lap 16 took over 11th place. Two laps later he made his first stop, but upon exiting the pits hit a tire that had been laid out in the pit box in front of him. The miscue cost Kanaan a drive through penalty which dropped him into 21st place. He immediately began regaining track position and when a yellow flag was thrown a lap later the lead cars pitted vaulting Kanaan into ninth place. On the restart Kanaan demonstrated why he is considered the master as he made a daring move that netted him six positions. Kanaan ran in third for most of the remainder of the stint before making his second stop on lap 51. When the rest of the field pitted a few laps later, Kanaan moved back into third and took over second on lap 57. After a brief challenge to eventual winner Ryan Hunter-Reay, Kanaan began to drop back as he saved fuel and ran on an old set of alternate (red) tires. With six laps remaining in the 85-lap contest, he had fallen to 10th and was in danger of being one lap short on fuel, but the team gambled and stayed out. At that point another yellow flag came out and with three laps remaining and fuel no longer an issue, Kanaan was given another chance during the restart. He took full advance of the opportunity as a melee ensued involving multiple crashes all of which Kanaan avoided as he picked up another six positions to move into fourth place.
"It's been a wild day,” Kanaan said. “It didn't help with the drive through penalty, but I had a great restart passing six cars and the guys did a great pit stop. We made a mistake using an old set of reds (alternate tires) in the last stint, so I was losing a lot of places, but I again managed to make it up on the restart. We are getting so close to a win, just not quite there yet."
Today’s fourth place finish ties Kanaan’s best showing in eight races here in Toronto which he first achieved in 2010. The 37-year-old Brazilian has finished nine of the first 10 races this year (DNF at St. Petersburg due to a non-team related component failure) and has now finished in the top-six six times with three top-three showings (season-high second at Milwaukee and thirds at Iowa and Indy). Three of his top-six finishes have come on street circuits, today’s fourth, a fourth at Long Beach and a sixth at Detroit. The perennial championship contender earned 32 points today and moved into sixth place in the championship race with 267 points. He is one point out of fifth and 66 out of first place.
Barrichello, driving the No. 8 BMC | EMBRASE – KV Racing Technology Chevrolet/Firestone car, qualified 20th, but started 18th after the penalties to two other drivers. He essentially held station until pitting on lap 14 which dropped him to 22nd. When the leaders pitted for the first time during the first caution, Barrichello moved into to 10th place. He picked up four more positions with an outstanding restart following the caution, but dropped back two places into eighth shortly thereafter. Barrichello remained in eighth until his second stop on lap 49, when he briefly dropped to 19th. The rest of the filed pitted a few laps later and Barrichello moved back into the top-10 eventually settling into eighth place. From the outset of the second stint, the team asked Barrichello to save fuel, but try and maintain his pace. Midway through the run it became apparent that he did not have enough fuel and he was under attack from behind. With a third stop inevitable, the team turned Barrichello loose and he charged into fifth place before pitting for the final time on lap 81. The stop dropped him to 17th place with four laps remaining. Fortunately, he survived the chaos during the final restart picking up six places in the process to finish 11th.
"I am happy with how today went,” Barrichello said. “We made a lot of progress between the morning warm-up session and the race and I am happy with how I drove. We decided before the race that we were going to take a gamble and in fact we finished better than we hoped so I pleased we took the risk."
Barrichello made his Toronto debut today although he has previously raced in Canada competing in 18 Canadian Grand Prix events at Montreal during his 19-year Formula One career (best finish of second in 1995, 2000, 2001 and 2004). The 40-year-old Brazilian, who has finished eight of the 10 races this year (both his DNFs, Detroit and Texas, came as a result of non-team related component failures), has had five top-10 performances this season (season-high seventh at Iowa, an eighth at Barber; ninth at Long Beach and 10th at Brazil and Milwaukee). He has finished 11th twice, here at Toronto and at Indy where he won the Chase Rookie of the Year Award. Barrichello scored 19 points today and is now 16th in the championship standings with 183 points, 34 out of 10th.
Viso, behind the wheel of the No. 5 CITGO | PDVSA – KV Racing Technology Chevrolet/Firestone machine, qualified 25th, but started 23rd. He held position early, pitted early and was running in 12th place after the first restart. He pitted for the second time on lap 38 to get out of traffic and onto a clear track, which he used to his advantage. It appeared that everything was going according to plan when he began to feel something wrong with the car. Viso pitted and the team quickly discovered a mechanical problem which took a second stop to repair. The two unscheduled stops dropped him four laps off the pace, but he continued the fight picking up valuable championship points.
“Starting in the back of the field is never easy, however we had a strategy that was working and we got a high as 11th,” Viso said. “Things were going well and as we planned, then we had a mechanical problem that we were able to address in the pits. That is the reason we were down four laps. I am upset about it, but there is nothing we can do except reload and focus on the next race.
Viso, who made his fourth start at Exhibition Place today, has a best finish of 13th in 2009. The 27-year-old Venezuelan has finished eight of the 10 races this year and neither of his DNF’s were his, or the team’s fault (component failure in Texas and victim of an incident in Iowa). Viso has scored three top-10 finishes this season, a season-high fifth at Milwaukee, an eighth at St. Petersburg and a ninth at Brazil, but has been in contention in several other events before misfortune beyond his control has found him. Viso earned 12 points today and sits 18th in the standings with 172 points.
Next up for KVRT is the Edmonton Indy, July 20-22, on the temporary airport street circuit in Edmonton, Canada. The race will be broadcast live on Sunday, July 22 on NBC starting at 2:45 p.m. ET.
KV Racing Technology was founded in January 2003 and joined the IndyCar Series in 2008. The Indianapolis based team is owned by successful venture capitalist Kevin Kalkhoven and 1996 IndyCar Champion Jimmy Vasser. Veteran Motorsports manager, Mark Johnson, is the team’s General Manager. Johnson is assisted by Team Manager Tom Wurtz, Technical Director Eric Cowdin and Operations Manager Steve Moore.
PaddockTalk Perspective
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