Hello Internet! Guido here, with another Scoring Indy update. So, with no race to preview for another week, and no full 2014 schedule released yet, I've decided to have a little fun yet again. This week, I'm returning the ultra-mega-long range crystal ball back in the cupboard, and pulling out my regular strength crystal ball to look ahead to next season.
Now, per the title of this here post, what I did was: I went to Wikipedia and looked up the "2014 IndyCar Series Season" article. It contains a list of (what I can only assume are) confirmed drivers and circuits for next season. I'm going to take these lists, along with my data from the last two seasons and tell you all exactly how next season would go if it were only the drivers and circuits listed on the Wikipedia page. For reference, those drivers and circuits are:
Drivers
Andretti Autosport: Marco Andretti, Ryan Hunter-Reay
Chip Ganassi Racing: Scott Dixon
Ed Carpetner Racing: Ed Carpenter
Rahal Letterman Lannigan Racing: Graham Rahal
Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing: Josef Newgarden
Schimdt Peterson Hamilton Motorsports: Tristian Vautier, Simon Pagenaud
Team Penske: Juan Montoya, Helio Castroneves, Will Power
There will obviously be more drivers than this. But, that's all we have on Wikipedia so far...
Circuits
St Petersburg
Long Beach
Barber
IMS Road Course
Indy 500
Belle Isle
Texas Motor Speedway
Toronto
Mid Ohio
Keep in mind, this is just what's on the Wikipedia page. This WILL NOT be next year's schedule. There will be more races. Some of them will be double-headers. But, none of that is on Wikipedia, thus it doesn't matter for this week's purposes
Round 1: St. Pete
And, right away we have a toss-up. For the last two years, the top Race Score has gone to either Castroneves or Dixon at St. Pete. I'll give the win to Helio, since he's actually won a race on the circuit. Your podium results:
1 -- Castroneves
2 -- Dixon
3 -- Montoya
Notes: Montoya gets onto the podium, because no one else has the consistency to grab the spot. He'll get some "vacancy nods" throughout.
Round 2: Long Beach
We make our way to sunny southern California for Round 2, and see a familiar face atop the podium. Your podium results:
1 -- Power
2 -- Pagenaud
3 -- Castroneves
Round 3: Barber
And a gorgeous facility it is! Highlighted, might I add, by some of my favorite racing since the introduction of the DW12. Your podium results:
1 -- Dixon
2 -- Power
3 -- Castroneves
Notes: In the last two years (or, as far back as I have records) these three have had a final Race Score result no lower than P7. Barber might be the toughest contest on this schedule, as Hunter-Reay, Pagenaud, Andretti, and Rahal have all put up consistent showings there.
Round 4: IMS Road Course
Now, this one is tough. The only drivers on our list to actually run open-wheel laps on the road course are Montoya and Rahal. Now, Rahal only tested, and in his F1 days, Montoya only finished a race at IMS twice. So, by educated guess, here are your podium results:
1 -- Montoya
2 -- Rahal
3 -- Hunter-Reay
Round 5: Indianapolis 500 Mile Race
Here we go: this projection is based not so much on Race Score finishes as race performance. The 500 can be such a roll of the dice anyways... Here goes:
1 -- Andretti
2 -- Carpenter
3 -- Castroneves
Round 6: Belle Isle
After the grand cathedral of Left-Hand Turns, we get all kinds of ambidextrous. Your podium results:
1 -- Dixon
2 -- Pagenaud
3 -- Hunter-Reay
Round 7: Texas
An extra 50 kilometers on this race in 2014 means another several minutes of me trying to figure out exactly how many miles that is. Anyway, while I bust out my calculator, here are your podium results:
1 -- Castroneves
2 -- Pagenaud
3 -- Power
Round 8: Toronto
North of the border we go, up to Toronto, where Scott Dixon enjoyed great success this year. Here are your podium results:
1 -- Dixon
2 -- Andretti
3 -- Castroneves
Round 9: Mid-Ohio
We finish the "season," such as Wikipedia has it, at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. Here are your final podium results:
1 -- Power
2 -- Dixon
3 -- Pagenaud
Final Results
If we give out three points for first, down to one for third; then our final standings end up something like this:
Dixon: 1st (3) 2nd (2) 3rd (0) -- 13
Castroneves : 1st (2) 2nd (0) 3rd (4) -- 10
Power: 1st (2) 2nd (1) 3rd (1) -- 9
Pagenaud: 1st (0) 2nd (3) 3rd (1) -- 7
Andretti: 1st (1) 2nd (1) 3rd (0) -- 5
Montoya: 1st (1) 2nd (0) 3rd (1) -- 4
Rahal: 1st (0) 2nd (1) 3rd (0) -- 2
Carpenter: 1st (0) 2nd (1) 3rd (0) -- 2
Hunter-Reay: 1st (0) 2nd (0) 3rd (2) -- 2
Your 2014 Wikipedia IndyCar Series Champion: Scott Dixon!
Stay Tuned
Next week, on Scoring Indy, we'll have some actual race-preview business to get down to! Be sure to follow @ScoringIndy on Twitter for updates!
Later!
-- Guido
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