IndyCar in Iowa: Setting sun, track condition may produce 'dangerous' race conditions

INDIANAPOLIS – Here are three of the biggest storylines heading into this weekend's Iowa 300 (Saturday, 7 p.m. ET, NBCSN, IndyCar Radio).

A dangerous race?

If you listened to this week’s edition of IndyStar's IndyCar Weekly podcast, then you already know some NTT IndyCar Series drivers are feeling uneasy about what's in store for them at Iowa Speedway this weekend. 

Podcast co-host and part-time Carlin Racing driver Conor Daly laid out a myriad concerns drivers will face Saturday, not the least of which is going to be dealing with the sun. 

“It’s not really a night race," Daly explained. "The sun is going to be up. I think it’s going to be really difficult, because if the sun is setting, look, I couldn’t see anything at Texas. At Turns 3 and 4, I couldn’t see a single thing. And if you’re trying to pass someone, you need to see every inch, and I was blind. So what do they think is going to happen when the sun is right in our eyes, coming into 3 and 4? I think it’s a really potentially hazardous situation, and I don’t like it.”

Following a sixth-place run at Toronto, James Hinchcliffe concurred, saying he was "disappointed with the start time."

"To call it a night race may be a little bit generous," Hinchcliffe said. "I think it's going to be a dusk race. I think there's going to be a point in the race where the sun is in a very dangerous position based on what we've heard from people who tested there recently."

The reigning Iowa winner also expressed disappointment, albeit a bit facetiously, about the other changes coming to the race — "It kind of sucks that the race we were particularly strong at last year has had the most changes." 

Not only will the start time be different but so will the power level. IndyCar is providing a boost that has teams and drivers curious about how much different the race will be compared to previous editions. 

Finally, after many years of wear and tear, the track at Iowa has added a lot of "character," as Scott Dixon put it.

"I just hope when we get there, we don’t see the track has holes in it," Daly said. "I love the people at Iowa, and I think they do a great job, but something is going to have to be done about that track. For our cars, they produce so much downforce that we physically will not be able to race there anymore if you have to turn in Turn 3 at 198 mph and there’s a hole in the track or stuff is flying, or it’s so bumpy. 

“This will be the most physical race of the year by far. I know how hard Texas was, and I didn’t expect that. Iowa for sure, especially if it goes green for a long time, it’s just relentless."

Pigot under pressure

It’s that time of year again — when the spotlight shifts back to Ed Carpenter’s outfit. Over the past six years, Iowa Speedway — even more so than Indianapolis Motor Speedway — has proven to be his team’s home away from home. 

Since 2013, Carpenter's team has put a driver in the top five every single year, starting with Carpenter himself in 2013 (fourth) and 2014 (fifth). From there, former Carpenter charge Josef Newgarden kicked off a podium streak that reached four last year. Newgarden finished runner-up in 2015 for what was then Carpenter Fisher Hartman Racing, then won the race for ECR in 2016. After Newgarden left for Penske, JR Hildebrand took the reins and finished second in 2017 before current full-season pilot Spencer Pigot matched that feat last season, scoring the first podium of his career.

Now the pressure is on Pigot to keep the good times rolling at Iowa, especially since his season hasn’t quite gone as planned. 

When Carpenter announced last year at Sonoma that ECR was bringing back Pigot as its lone full-season driver, he did so saying he expected Pigot to start contending for victories. Unfortunately for the young California native, that hasn’t happened. Despite a definitive improvement in qualifying — an average starting position of 11.7 versus 14.8 last year — the results have been largely the same. Through 11 races, Pigot has tallied two top-10 finishes and has an average finishing position of 13.6. Last year at this same time, Pigot had also tallied two top-10s with an AFP of 15.0. 

Needless to say, the pressure is on Pigot yet again to deliver at a track that has treated his team and the No. 21 Chevrolet historically well. The good news for Pigot is that he didn’t buckle under the weight of mounting pressure last year, so there’s no reason to expect him to do so this time around. Expect Pigot to be fighting for his and ECR's first win of the season come Saturday night. 

Who’s going to win?

While ECR has enjoyed quite a bit of success at Iowa Speedway, it also has long been a favorite track of Andretti Autosport and Ryan Hunter-Reay, my preseason pick to conquer the Iowa 300. In the spirit of sticking to my guns, I’ll stay with Hunter-Reay as my choice to emerge from Saturday night’s race with a victory. Not only is he due, but his resume there is undeniable. 

The Andretti veteran has won three times since 2012, including the two most recent night races (2014 and 2015). He’s also racked up a pair of podiums, including a third-place run in 2017. Last season he qualified third but finished 19th, falling out of the race with a suspension failure 17 laps from the finish. 

A visit to the winner’s circle would be a welcome trip for Hunter-Reay, who likely saw his championship hopes dashed last weekend after he finished 16th on the streets of Toronto. It was his second straight finish outside the top 10 after rattling off three consecutive top-five finishes coming out of his eighth-place run at the Indianapolis 500. 

In seventh place and 149 points back of Newgarden in the championship, Hunter-Reay is no more than a long shot to win the title, but he should be considered a heavy favorite heading into the weekend. 

As far as the rest of the championship contenders are concerned, Newgarden looks to be the favorite among them. Iowa has never treated Dixon, Alexander Rossi or Simon Pagenaud very well. Dixon is 0-for-12 at Iowa with only two podiums. Rossi hasn't finished in the top five in three career starts, and Pagenaud has yet to podium in seven tries. 

Newgarden, though, not only has a win at Iowa but has tallied three career podiums and nearly notched a fourth last year, leading 229 laps before falling to fourth in the final stint. As long as Newgarden avoids any critical mistakes, he should be in contention for the win once again Saturday night. 

Follow IndyStar Motorsports Insider Jim Ayello on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram: @jimayello.