Indycar Indy 200 at Mid Ohio Preview

This article will fill you in on all the storylines and things to look out for ahead the this weekend's Indycar action at the Mid Ohio Sportscourse.

(Image credit to Honda Racing)

Last Race Round-up 

The last race took place at Road America which gave us a spectacularly entertaining race with so many twists and turns and many different strategies on offer. The race all came together in the final laps which gave us a chase down of Lundgaard on Armstrong for the lead of the race. Lundgaard was on fresh tires and was gaining on him consistently. However, luck wasn't on the New Zealander's side as Armstrong's Meyer Shank engine gave way as he retired from the lead with a couple laps remaining. The final restart was chaotic with many incidents ruining the races of many as Siegel and Rahal dropped through the field just to name a few. Lundgaard was able to hold on to take a last at the end of lap one to victory lane, a feat that's such a rare achievement. Malukas once again finished P2 and Power took a well needed podium finish in his Andretti machine. 

Championship Standings Update

1. Alex Palou 374 Pts

2. David Malukas 314 Pts

3. Kyle Kirkwood 313 Pts

4. Christian Lundgaard 297 Pts

5. Pato O'Ward 257 Pts

6. Felix Rosenqvist 248 Pts

7. Scott McLaughlin 248 Pts

8. Josef Newgarden 247 Pts

9. Marcus Ericsson 213 Pts

10. Scott Dixon 211 Pts

Track Analysis 

(Image credit to Wikipedia)

This circuit is called the Mid-Ohio sports course which is a 2.258 Miles circuit with 13 corners of varying configuration. This track is known for its tricky and fast flowing nature with corners coming thick and fast throughout. The undulations of the track make it feel like a rollercoaster for the drivers who are trying to hang onto their machines and mistakes are extremely easy to make. Fuel saving is key around here with strategy often the ploy used to move forward with overtaking being a challenge. It is very borderline as to whether the 2 or 3 stop is preferred and while the 2 stop is more risky if managed well it has been very effective in taking big results at Mid Ohio in the past. 

Drivers to Watch

• Alex Palou - Palou is never a driver not to watch heading into a race weekend and importantly he has something to prove heading into this weekend as his recent form has been slightly lower than the standards he would usually set for himself. 1 win in 5 rounds and with overall execution of the races from himself and his Ganassi #9 crew not at its surgical best. However, with a strong recent record at the Mid-Ohio track and hoping to avenge last season’s disappointing error costing him the race victory to his Ganassi teammate Scott Dixon, Palau is set for a strong weekend aiming to win and at least maintain his streak of finishing in the top 2 at this event in the past 3 races. 

• Scott Dixon - The master of the Mid Ohio race track where he has won an incredible seven times and taken the podium nine times. He needs no introduction about his fuel saving prowess and decisive overtaking abilities around this road course. Dixon has had an underwhelming season so far sitting in P10 in the standings but this track has always reminded us of Dixon’s ability so it will be no surprise to see him return to victory lane and maintain the record of winning once in every season of Indycar racing that he has participated in. This track resembles his best opportunity to leave the Ganassi crew at the end of the season with one last parting gift ahead of his departure.

• Christian Lundgaard - Lundgaard has had the best road course form comfortably so far this season with an average finishing position of under 1.5. Lundgaard has taken victory in the past two road courses this season at the IMS road course and most recently last round at Road America. Both different types of races for Lundgaard but both resulting in the same victorious outcome. Lundgaard holds a best finish at Mid-Ohio of 3rd place last season only beaten for the Ganassi drivers. With confidence at sky high at this time, Lundgaard will use this momentum to continue his title chase trying to cut the deficit to Alex Palou which sits currently at 77 Pts.

•  Pato O’Ward - A difficult season so far for Pato who hasn’t had the result he had hoped for to build on last season’s second in the standings. Lundgaard this season so far has become the number one driver on results as he sits around 40 Pts behind currently. Pato will be desperate to have a strong result this weekend and having been a past winner at this circuit this should give him the confidence to be able to extract the performance out of his Arrow Mclaren #5 Machine. 

• David Malukas - David Malukas has so far had a standout season so far in only his first season in the Penske team. A lot of pressure and expectation that so far has been dealt with and exceeded by Malukas. The only thing missing from his repertoire is that elusive first victory in Indycar that has somehow through no fault of his own and just close misses hasn’t taken place yet. Malukas has taken several P2 this year and sits in P2 in the standings 60 Pts behind championship leader Alex Palou. Malukas will be aiming to chip into that margin with races slowly running out. 

(Image credit to Mclaren.com)

Timings For This Weekend

Practice 1: 3.00 PM ET 8.00 PM  BST Friday

Practice 2: 10.00 AM ET/ 3.00 PM BST Saturday

Qualifying: 2.30 PM ET/ 7.30 PM BST Saturday

Warm UP: 9.00 AM ET/  2.00 PM BST Sunday

Race: 12:30 PM ET/ 5:30 PM BST Sunday 

This weekend is shaping up to be a fun one with many drivers in contention for victory and with a track that usually throws up interesting strategic races it is anyone’s guess as to who will take the victory so make sure to tune into this weekend’s racing action.

Article Written by Taegan H