The Next Big Thing?

French. Talented. Handsome (the opinion of some female racing fans including myself).

These and other words can be used to describe rookie, Simon Pagenaud, who is currently 3rd in INDYCAR points standings behind only Will Power and Helio Castroneves and is well on his way to being named series Rookie of the Year over Josef Newgarden and Katherine Legge. While loyal fans know who this young man is and at least some of his background, the casual fan might. Here is a taste of his history (mostly racing) and also what I think about the fast Frenchman and whether or not he is the next big thing in INDYCAR.

First, the basics: Simon is from Pointiers, France, almost in the center of the country (I’m serious; I got bored and looked for it on a map one time). He chose racing over eventually running the family business. He wears a ring on his left pinkie finger, a family heirloom given to him by his grandfather. He will turn 28 on May 18th, Fast Friday. His nickname is “Jean Girard” after Sacha Baron Cohen’s character in Talladega Nights with one exception: Simon prefers women.

As for racing, he raced karts, Formule Renault, and World Series Renault in France and other parts of Europe and was very successful. When he came to the U.S. in 2006, he made a name for himself in open wheel cars and sports cars. In 2006, he won both the rookie of the year title and championship in the Champ Car Atlantic Series. The following year, 2007, was his rookie year in Champ Car where he raced for Team Australia with Will Power as a teammate.

After reunification in 2008, Simon was one of the Champ Car drivers left out when some teams made the move to the IndyCar Series. Enter two-time CART champion and 2003 Indianapolis 500 champion Gil de Ferran who was making his return to racing in the American Lemans Series and searching for a co-driver. Ironically enough, both drove for Derrick Walker at points in their careers which likely led to Simon signing with de Ferran Motorsports for all but the first three races of the season. While they didn’t win, they came very close with two podiums - a 3rd in their debut at Miller Motorsports Park and a 2nd at Leguna Seca Raceway - both with Simon behind the wheel for the final stint.

The following year, 2009, the only accomplishment not made by de Ferran Motorsports was not winning the championship and only because Simon and Gil failed to score points in two races. They won five out of ten races including four in a row. Simon was behind the wheel when the 66 crossed the finish line at both Miller Motorsports Park and Lime Rock. All through the season, there was talk that the team might make the move to the IndyCar Series.

But alas, that did not become reality. For 2010, Simon moved to Highcroft Racing who was his former team’s championship rival the year before. The team scored 4 wins (including Long Beach where Simon chased down and passed Adrian Fernandez’s Aston Martin for the victory in the final laps) and the title. Simon also won the 1000km of Spa with the Peugeot team.

In 2011, due to lack of funding, the Highcroft team only ran at the 12 Hours of Sebring and scored a 2nd place finish. He also raced for Peugeot at Silverthorne (where they won) and at the 24 Hours of Lemans (and scored a 2nd place finish). He also raced a V8 Supercar at the Gold Coast 600 and finished 3rd in the second of the two races held that weekend. Simon also got a taste of the series he’d been working hard and waiting patiently to join. He ran 3 INDYCAR races last year, all filling for drivers - two due to injuries (Ana Beatriz and Justin Wilson) and one due to issues with customs (Simona de Silvestro). He used these opportunities to his advantage. He took three not-as-competitive cars and scored reasonable finishes, including a top 10 in his first INDYCAR race at Barber Motorsports Park.

His performance caught the eyes of several teams for their 2012 programs. At the end of the summer, the rumors started swirling that Simon was going to race for Sam Schmidt Motorsports. In December, the worst-kept secret in INDYCAR was revealed and Simon was officially named the driver of the 77. So far this year, Simon has netted 3 top 10’s and 2 top 5’s including a 2nd place finish at Long Beach where he led 26 laps. He also appeared in the Firestone Fast 6 once and probably would have had an even better finish in the season opener at St. Petersburg if it weren’t for a 10-grid position penalty following an engine change. Going into Brazil, he is both the top rookie contender and top Honda driver and has the potential to have another good run.

Simon’s ultimate test will come next month at Indianapolis. He has almost no oval experience but is officially licensed to race on them after a recent test at Texas Motor Speedway. He does have the benefit of racing for the team that won the pole and provided some technical assistance to the race winning team, Bryan Herta Autosport. Schmidt-Hamilton Motorsports is also adding a second car to its “500” lineup and the driver is rumored to be Townsend Bell, who has run fairly well on ovals in the past.

Now here’s my take on Simon - I love him and have since 2007. One of my goals if I make it to the Firestone 550k at Texas Motor Speedway in June is to meet and take a picture with him. I find him to be both talented and easy on the eyes as well.

I first noticed him back when he was a rookie in Champ Car. I lost track of him after reunification, though, for a few months until I watched Petit Lemans and saw that he was in the field. Since then, I’ve kept a eye on his career. From the moment I heard he hoped to one day race in INDYCAR, I crossed my fingers waiting for a team to hire him. I am glad that Dreyer and Reinbold (twice) and HVM gave him his first opportunities and that Schmidt-Hamilton hired him for this season. Simon has shown speed everywhere he has raced this year and I think with some track time on the ovals, he will run well.

As for the question "Is he or is he not the next big thing?" I think we'll just have to see. So far, I'd say yes but time will tell whether or not Simon will one day be an INDYCAR champion or eventually become the 4th (or 5th if you say French-born) Frenchman to win the Indianapolis 500.

The end of last season was tough on Sam Schmidt and his race team with the sudden passings of Indy Lights team manger Chris Griffis and driver Dan Wheldon within a few short weeks. Both men’s memories are not far from the minds of anyone on the team and even its newest driver. My fingers are crossed that 2012 continues to be a year of great accomplishments for Schmidt-Hamilton Racing and they celebrate some wins on the INDYCAR side (it nearly happened at Long Beach), a rookie of the year title (highly possible), the Mario Andretti road course championship trophy (if he can get past his old buddy Will), and maybe even contend for the overall title (as of right now, it’s looking like a big possibility).

My Take on Long Beach - Power Wins But Pagenaud Steals the Show

I admit that I’ve always liked Long Beach. Never knew why. I guess the location looks good on TV (and I love the dolphin fountain). Plus, the racing has failed to disappoint in recent years. This most recent race did not disappointed. I spent all 85 laps in front of the living room’s projector screen (No NASCAR race = no banishment to my parents’ bedroom for the INDYCAR race) and by the end I was actually pacing because I was so excited.

In the end, I got to see a great looking podium – my former Team Australia boys (I liked Will because his name was funny and Simon because he was cute) and probably INDYCAR’s next big personality.

Pre-Race: Again, another great pre-race show. The most important stories were discussed and the interviews were excellent. James Hinchcliffe standing behind Josef Newgarden during his interview was priceless and I sensed a touch of foreshadowing watching Townsend Bell interview Simon Pagenaud pre-race - these two are going to be teammates at Indy. Again, Robin Miller’s grid walk was ill-timed but at least he was able to interview a handful people and it was amusing.

The Race Broadcast: Again. Another A+ broadcast on NBC Sports Network that makes ABC/ESPN look ridiculous. Where there slip-ups? Of course. But they were much less than any INDYCAR broadcast on their other television partner and even more less than on NASCAR broadcasts.

Also, kudos to NBC Sports did not cut off right at the bottom of the hour to go to NHL pre-game programming and gave them another five minutes.

Now if we can just get the network tweeting about INDYCAR and including their news on the homepage before NASCAR and F1 news.

The Race: Another great race. Personally, I found Long Beach to be the best one this season. It was very exciting and had both its share of pit strategy and a little bumping and banging. Also, there was one driver who probably was the class of the field all day (and his name was NOT Will Power).

A very disliked moment for several fans, including myself, was Marco Andretti launching off Graham Rahal and taking flight. Still a scary sight. And the war of words in result of the incident I will discuss in-depth sometime during this evil off-weekend we have coming up.

Unlike some, I didn’t expect the possible launch of a car in a crash to go away and instead hoped that the risk was lowered. What we saw was a big test with the new car and I feel that it passed. Andretti did not land on his head like has in previous years. Also, the most important thing of all was that he was unhurt.

A Bit on the Chevy Penalty: I know I should discuss it here and I will, despite the fact I’m about sick of hearing about it. Actually, I’m ready to say that it’s time to move on from it. Looks like INDYCAR can’t do anything to the Chevys to keep them from running up front (though a Honda just about nearly won).

Proving His Talent: I’m probably going to say what most have said about Sunday’s race – what an amazing drive by Simon Pagenaud. Most laps led and nearly wins the race. What more can be said? I’ll say a little bit more sometime later this week or next week because there is too much to say here.

I will say here that Sam Schmidt hired a good racer for the 77 car. After the heartbreak in Las Vegas last October, it’s nice to see that number with some new good memories (and likely soon victories) tied to it

Another First-Time Podium Finisher: OK. It came because his own team (Ryan Hunter-Reay) received a 30-second penalty for punting Takuma Sato but, hey, it’s a podium finish and James Hinchcliffe, was on the third step. I hope the people at GoDaddy are noticing this young man and how well he’s done this season (a lot better than their driver in NASCAR has) and makes sure he gets his own TV ad and a spot on GoDaddy.com’s homepage. Like Pagenaud, Hinch will be in victory lane this year.

Inconsistently Rearing Its Ugly Head (Again): There were four incidents in which a driver was punted by other driver. Three were penalized (one drive-thru; two 30 seconds in the finishing order). Guess who wasn’t? Yes. While Viso received a drive-thru (felt like he regressed yesterday after many recent races of fairly clean driving and no stupid mistakes) for a punt of… I don’t even remember whom now, and both Ryan Hunter-Reay and Helio Castroneves were penalized 30 seconds in the finishing order - Hunter-Reay for a punt on Takuma Sato and Castroneves for a punt on Rubens Barrichello - Dario who clearly hit Newgarden early on in the race (though he says he didn’t) was found not guilty of “avoidable contact” again.

A kind message to Beaux Barfield: I love what you’ve done so far this year but there has to be some consistency in penalties. Signed, all INDYCAR fans (including myself).

Other Notables: Before the incident with Hunter-Reay, Sato was on his way to a 3rd place finish… Tony Kanaan finished 4th after two difficult races and is now 11th in the standings… Dario’s rough season continued with a 15th place finish… Mike Conway, Simon de Silvestro, and Alex Tagliani all retired from the race with mechanical issues along with Scott Dixon, who dropped to 4th in points

After the Checkers – Power Again But Not By Much: At the end of the race, you thought that maybe there was going to be a final lap pass but, like many road/street courses races before, Will Power took his second victory of the season putting both Penske and Chevy at 3-0 to start the season.

Again, I’m still trying to figure out how he saved fuel. Of course, he does drive for Penske and he is good on twisties. Plus, Tim Cindric was Helio’s strategist for a long time and they won many races together.

Will Will’s domination continue? We’ll see in Brazil. He does already have the first two victories.

INDYCAR 36: This week’s episode featured Graham Rahal. While a pretty good episode, it seemed like Rahal came off as a bit of a complainer in response to some situations (ex: Hunter-Reay’s crash in Round 2 of quals, Helio defending 3rd place). Still, it was very nice to see the relationship between Bob and Graham. Personally, I thought Tony Kanaan’s was even better.

Also, a small piece of “INDYCAR 36” news – during last Tuesday’s episode of “Trackside with Curt Cavin and Kevin Lee” (while I don’t listen live; I download the podcasts every week), Kevin mentioned that there have been two more episodes of the series added to the 10 already planned meaning a season of 12 episodes. Not bad for the motorsports series NBC sports actually broadcast but has an issue with not promoting it on their homepage and their Twitter page.

Next Race: April 29

Sao Paulo Indy 300

Streets of Sao Paulo

Sao Paulo, Brazil

12 PM ET (11PM CT) - NBC Sports Network

Defending Winner: Will Power

INDYCAR 36

Featuring Ryan Hunter-Reay

11:30PM ET (10:30PM CT) - NBC Sports Network

Replays at Various Times Throughout the week

My Take on Barber - And Will Wins Again In Sweet Home Alabama

Note: Sorry this is later than I expected it to be. Last week was insane as my daily schedule was a little out of whack. Also had a mock employment interview (if you follow me on Twitter, you know how nervous I was) and top of that was battling some annoying effects of sinus drainage (stupid weather and pine pollen). Anyway, here is my take on the race at Barber.

“You’re not going to see much passing.”

“You’re not going to see any passing.”

“Passing will be almost nonexistent.”

How many times did we hear these and similar phrases regarding passing leading up to the race at Barber? Too many to list. Sunday, we saw more passing than we’d seen in the races first two years. The team and face on top of the podium? All too familiar.

Pre-Race: Yay. I got to watch the pre-race Sunday. I’m not 100% sure that I like the new feature of the crowd behind the stage. Too NASCAR on SPEED for me. But I did think they were less loud and annoying than the others. There was also no booing when any names were mentioned (unlike SPEED where “Kyle Busch” earns a great chorus of boos which I don’t understand).

Other than that slight issue, very good pre-race show. Kevin Lee was again on the pre-race stage and I‘m a huge fan of his. Important stories were covered and the tribute to Dan was short but excellent. He would’ve made a great broadcaster once his racing career ended. Robin Miller stole the show during his “grid run.” Not very good timing obviously but did birth my newest favorite quote: “What the hell? They’re all praying!” Classic Robin Miller.

The Race Broadcast: While the St. Pete broadcast on ABC was not very good, the broadcast on Versus - excuse me, NBC Sports Network, was an A. All of the guys on the broadcast team (yes, even Bob Jenkins with his mispronunciations at times and Robin Miller being Robin Miller) were fantastic.

I miss Lindy Thackston like crazy, but NBC did hire a good pit reporter in Townsend Bell. I’ve always liked him and am hoping he gets an Indy 500 ride this year (hearing he might be driving for Schmidt-Hamilton). He, Kevin, and Marty reported on what needed to be reported on; little fluff.

As for Jon, Wally, and Bob in the booth, thank you for reporting on the race and NOT trying to be cute and funny like the three in the booth on FOX during NASCAR races. I don’t think any brain cells died while watching the Barber race. Bob was a professional as always (I grew up with him in the broadcast booth) but did make a few mispronunciations during the race. I actually found them funny especially, “Katherine’s leg is in the gravel.”

In all, I’m sad that after Long Beach and Brazil we have to go back to ABC. Hopefully they improve their coverage especially since it’s Indy but and so happy to see the NBC Sports Network is doing a great job so far.

The Race: The racing on the track was excellent. The drivers again treated each other with respect (though I kept feeling like Marco was going to accidentally hit someone before the race was over). I’m also glad that these drivers can defend their position now. Defending is part of racing and I think Beaux Barfield is policing these guys and girls well. Passing was quite frequent and there were some exciting ones. My only disappointment was there wasn’t a huge battle for the victory at the end and the best one was for third.

There were only three mechanical failures this time around - two from Honda (Charlie Kimball and Takuma Sato) and one from Lotus (Alex Tagliani, who never completed a lap). While I feel for those teams, it does keep things interesting. So far, none of this season’s front-runners have fallen victims to issues. Should be interesting if it does happen in any of the upcoming races.

Passing Here, Passing There, Passing Everywhere: So how many people lost money for betting that there would be little passing at Barber this year? I would say that there were more passes Sunday than the first two races combined. There were some great passes. The early three-wide pass starring EJ Viso, Will Power, and Simon Pagenaud was probably the most exciting. I’m not sure what caused this great amount of passing. Maybe the new car; maybe it’s the fact that INDYCAR has gained some great talent.

“Frenchy can drive.” They came very close to winning at Lemans last June with Peugeot. One is now a (sort of) rookie running the second-best Honda this season for a team with something to prove owned by two men who have been the odds stacked against them. The other is running a Lotus for a team that has been through many team name changes and many other changes in general (especially drivers). If you don’t know who I was talking about, I’m talking about Simon Pagenaud and Sebastien Bourdais. Both have been impressive in the first two races of the 2012 INDYCAR season.

Despite fading at the end in St. Pete, Bourdais was running in the top three… in a LOTUS for DRAGON RACING. I think before this season, the last time, Dragon had really had a sniff of the front was sometime in 2010. Fast-forward to Barber. I was impressed with Bourdais at Barber. Lotus’ first top 10 in 2012 with a 9th place finish. Not bad. I can easily see more success from Sea-bass and Dragon. Hope to see the same for Legge eventually.

What can I say about Pagenaud that hasn’t already been said by someone else somewhere else? He’s good. Sam Schmidt and Davey Hamilton (technically Schmidt’s decision rather than Hamilton’s) made a great choice. Most impressive rookie/”newbie” so far in my opinion. One top 5, two top 10’s, one Firestone Fast Six appearance, fifth in points behind Castroneves, Dixon, Power, and Hinchcliffe and ahead of Dario. And we’re absolutely sure he’s a rookie right?

Dario, Where Are You? And now we move from some of the biggest surprises of the good variety to a shocking negative one - the defending champion has led only one lap this season, has one top 10, and is 10th in points. Not only that but he didn’t even make out of Round 1 during qualifying at Barber. Yeah. I’m surprised too. Only thing right now that is similar to last season is that his hair’s still long and curly and he’s still Mr. Ashley Judd.

It seems that Dario does not have a full grasp on the new car yet while his teammates, especially Dixon, seem to have. It’s a bit surprising but it’s also a little reassuring. Many expected the front-runners (Franchitti, Dixon, Power, Castroneves, Briscoe) to almost immediately figure out the DW-12. While I don’t expect it to last long, for now I will enjoy the fact that Dario is not running at the front at his moment in time.

Will he figure out the DW12? Probably. Might there be a new champion this season after four out of five years of Dario? Right now, it’s highly likely.

Other Notables: Scott Dixon finished 2nd again and is still 2nd in points… James Hinchcliffe scored another top 10 with a 6th place finish… Rubens Barrichello scored his first top 10 of the year with an a finish of 8th… Oriol Servia and his smooth Spanish accent finished 13th, the second highest finish for Lotus… the bad luck keeps coming for Tony Kanaan; he finished 21st and is currently dead-last in points.

After the Checkers - Oh, It’s Power Again: When the checkered flag waved it was not a surprise to see who was the winner - Will Power. After starting 9th after a qualifying that knocked him out of the Fast 6 for what felt like the first time since he filled in for Helio in 2009 during his tax evasion trial (a small note that tomorrow is the third anniversary of his acquittal), he came back to win.

This was actually my favorite win by Power because he had to work hard for it and have good pit strategy to get to the front. Now if we can just forget him and Tim Cindric (whom I usually love) complaining up until green flag time about the tires.

Also, in my opinion, Mr. Power seriously needs a new victory celebration. I mean the leap is cool and all but then it’s a little boring and sort of makes him look stupid.

INDYCAR 36: I don’t know who watched but I watched and loved INDYCAR 36. For those who didn’t (or couldn’t) see it, the first featured driver was Tony Kanaan and cameras followed him at St. Pete. Great work by NBC Sports for not only featuring the weekend’s activities (including that very emotional and sweet exchange between Kanaan and Dan Wheldon’s little sister, Holly) but also talking about what got him started in racing. I give INDYCAR 36 an A+ and hope the next nine episodes are just as good.
　
Next Race: April 15
Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach
Streets of Long Beach
Long Beach, CA
3:30 PM ET (2:30 PM CT) - NBC Sports Network
Defending Winner: Mike Conway

INDYCAR 36
Featuring Graham Rahal
3:00 PM ET (2:00 PM CT) - NBC Sporrts Network
Replays at Various Times Throughout the week