Last year’s Mid-Ohio winner, Brisbane-born Kiwi Scott Dixon, was third, while Briscoe’s fellow Australian Will Power of Queensland was the highest placed rookie in fourth position. Power’s teammate Oriol Servia rounded out the top five.
Briscoe, who started second next to teammate and pole-sitter Helio Castroneves, fell behind early as drivers struggled with rain tyres on a rapidly drying track.
Roger Penske, strategist on the No. 6 car, brought Briscoe into the pits early, a move that got Briscoe out of sequence and eventually into the lead late in the 85-lap race. From there, the Sydney driver was able to build as much as a nine-second lead in the final laps, claiming the victory by 7.2640 seconds.
The win sees him move to fifth in the championship standings from eighth, while Dixon's third position sees his championship lead over Castroneves cut by five points to 58. Power’s result sees him maintain 11th in the overall standings and move 10 points closer to current Rookie of the Year points leader Hideki Mutoh, who finished ninth in today’s race.
The result marks the second consecutive weekend that teammates have finished 1-2 in the IndyCar Series. Target Chip Ganassi Racing teammates Dixon and Dan Wheldon finished 1-2 July 12 in Nashville.
From here the IndyCar series heads to the Rexall Edmonton Indy July 26 at Edmonton City Centre Airport as the unified series continues on a schedule that is the most diverse in world motorsports.
The 2008 schedule will take the teams and drivers to short ovals, superspeedways, and road and street courses including the Gold Coast Indy 300 which is regarded as a ‘crown jewel’ in international motorsport.
While the IndyCar Series was in full flight over the weekend, closer to home Mark Winterbottom was continuing his superb form by winning round seven of the 2008 V8 Supercar Championship Series - which will co-headline the Gold Coast Indy 300 in October alongside the IndyCar Series - in Queensland.
Winterbottom won both of Sunday's closing races after placing second in Saturday's opening race. Last year's Gold Coast Indy 300 runner-up Russell Ingall claimed second overall on his home-track after taking third, second and third in the three races. James Courtney was third for the round.
The result sees Winterbottom extend his championship lead to 122 points over last year's Gold Coast Indy 300 winner and reigning V8 Supercars champion Garth Tander.
The next round of the V8 Supercar Championship will be held at Winton, Victoria on August 1-3, which will be round eight of a 14 round championship that takes in two international rounds (NZ and Bahrain) as well as the Gold Coast Indy 300 in October.
With 96 hours of non-stop excitement over October 23-26 as the Gold Coast comes alive to the sound of the IndyCars burning up the track and Australia’s own V8 Supercars scorching around one of the most famous beach-side cities in the world, the event is the hottest ticket in town.
Tickets are now on sale for the Gold Coast Indy 300 with ticket options to suit everyone's needs. Four day Grandstand passes are available for those who prefer to watch the racing from the comfort of their own reserved seat or for those who prefer to wander around and soak up the atmosphere then a four day, weekend or single day General Admission pass might be more their style. For more information on ticket options go to indy.com.au. For information on Corporate Hospitality packages please call our Sales Team on (07) 5588 6800.
WHAT THEY HAD TO SAY…
Ryan Briscoe (No. 6 Team Penske, finished first at Mid-Ohio):
“What a weekend for Team Penske. It really couldn’t be better,” said Briscoe.
“It just feels so good to get this win. It’s been a rough couple of weeks in the lead up to here, and this one’s sweet for sure. What a comeback.
“It’s all strategy from Roger Penske himself. I don’t know if it’s momentum, because the two races in the lead up to this one weren’t so good, but hopefully we’ll keep some momentum from here.”
Helio Castroneves (No. 3 Team Penske, second at Mid-Ohio):
“The yellow came in the right place. Ryan drove a heck of a race,” said Castroneves.
“I was just trying to do everything I can, and unfortunately I got held up in traffic. We just didn’t have enough, so it’s a shame, but second is good.”
Scott Dixon (No. 9 Target Chip Ganassi Racing, finished third at Mid-Ohio):
“It was a good day for us. We started sixth. I knew we still had a car to win,” said Dixon.
“Everything was really crazy today. We didn’t get into any rhythm.
“Everybody knew how it was going to play out and who was doing what, and then we had a bad pit stop when we tried to jump Helio (Castroneves) there, and that put us back a little ways.
“So it’s frustrating, but still I think we only lost maybe five points in the championship.”
Will Power (No. 8 Aussie Vineyards – Team Australia, fourth at Mid-Ohio):
“I am really happy for the KVRT Aussie Vineyards team. This was a track I had never been to and we started well behind the eight-ball,” said Power.
“We got the car better and better all weekend, made the right choice on tires early on in the race and had a good race strategy.
“We had the pace to ride at the front and we did. I am just really happy that we got good championship points here, and hopefully we can do that again next weekend in Edmonton.”
Mark Winterbottom (No. 5 Orrcon FPR Falcon - first at Queensland Raceway, V8 Supercar Championship Series):
“Another fantastic weekend by the team,” said Winterbottom.
“It was good to make some good points, win the round and further extend my lead in the championship.
“I qualified well, had some good pace in race one but it is hard to pass around this place so I settled for second behind James (Courtney). In today’s two races I had a couple of good battles, mainly with Russell (Ingall) in the final one.
“He was right on me after the stops but I was confident that my car would get faster as the race went on, and it did which allowed me to have a bit of breathing space.
“We’ve certainly got the points ticking over towards the championship and at the same time are winning races, so it is a good position to be in.”
RESULTS: Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio, Presented by Westfield Insurance
Results of the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio IndyCar Series event at the 2.258-mile Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, with order of finish, starting position in parentheses, driver, chassis-engine, laps completed and reason out (if any):
1. (2) Ryan Briscoe, Dallara-Honda, 85, Running
2. (1) Helio Castroneves, Dallara-Honda, 85, Running
3. (6) Scott Dixon, Dallara-Honda, 85, Running
4. (12) Will Power, Dallara-Honda, 85, Running
5. (8) Oriol Servia, Dallara-Honda, 85, Running
6. (11) Vitor Meira, Dallara-Honda, 85, Running
7. (5) Tony Kanaan, Dallara-Honda, 85, Running
8. (21) Darren Manning, Dallara-Honda, 85, Running
9. (10) Hideki Mutoh, Dallara-Honda, 85, Running
10. (15) Ryan Hunter-Reay, Dallara-Honda, 85, Running
11. (4) Justin Wilson, Dallara-Honda, 85, Running
12. (20) Danica Patrick, Dallara-Honda, 85, Running
13. (9) Bruno Junqueira, Dallara-Honda, 85, Running
14. (25) Jaime Camara, Dallara-Honda, 85, Running
15. (22) Ed Carpenter, Dallara-Honda, 85, Running
16. (14) Graham Rahal, Dallara-Honda, 84, Running
17. (13) Dan Wheldon, Dallara-Honda, 84, Running!
18. (23) A.J. Foyt IV, Dallara-Honda, 84, Running
19. (16) Mario Dominguez, Dallara-Honda, 83, Running
20. (7) Buddy Rice, Dallara-Honda, 82, Running
21. (24) Marty Roth, Dallara-Honda, 80, Running
22. (17) E.J. Viso, Dallara-Honda, 80, Running
23. (26) Milka Duno, Dallara-Honda, 79, Running
24. (19) Mario Moraes, Dallara-Honda, 61, Off Course
25. (3) Marco Andretti, Dallara-Honda, 41, Contact
26. (18) Enrique Bernoldi, Dallara-Honda, 8, Contact
RACE STATISTICS
- Winner's average speed: 94.873 mph
- Time of race: 2:01:22.8496
- Margin of victory: 7.2640 seconds
- Cautions: 5 caution flags for 19 laps
- Lead changes: 7 among 7 drivers
- Lap leaders: Castroneves 1-5, Meira 6-26, Manning 27, Wilson 28-38, Briscoe 39-55, Moraes 56, Power 57-59, Briscoe 60-85.
- Point standings: Dixon 455, Castroneves 397, Kanaan 365, Wheldon 364, Briscoe 296, Patrick 284, Mutoh 276, Andretti 263, Hunter-Reay 252, Servia 250.
INDYCAR SERIES POINTS STANDINGS – POST RACE 12 – TOP TEN
1. Scott Dixon - 455 points
2. Helio Castroneves - 397
3. Tony Kanaan - 365
4. Dan Wheldon - 364
5. Ryan Briscoe - 296
6. Danica Patrick - 284
7. Hideki Mutoh - 276
8. Marco Andretti - 263
9. Ryan Hunter-Reay - 252
10. Oriol Servia - 250
11. Will Power - 245
BOMBARDIER ROOKIE OF THE YEAR POINTS STANDINGS – POST RACE 12
1. Hideki Mutoh - 276 points
2. Will Power - 245
3. Graham Rahal - 215
4. Justin Wilson - 202
5. E.J. Viso - 202
6. Enrique Bernoldi - 182
7. Mario Moraes - 172
8. Jaime Camara - 114
9. Mario Dominguez - 86
HONDA INDY 200 AT MID-OHIO POST-RACE NOTES:
- This is Ryan Briscoe’s second career victory and second victory this season. He also won at Milwaukee.
- Helio Castroneves finished second, his 10th top-five finish of the season.
- This is the 27th time that teammates have finished 1-2 and the second consecutive race that teammates have finished 1-2. Scott Dixon and Dan Wheldon finished 1-2 for Target Chip Ganassi Racing last weekend at Nashville.
- This is the eighth time Team Penske teammates have finished 1-2. The last time was at Phoenix in 2005 when Sam Hornish Jr. won and Helio Castroneves finished second.
- Scott Dixon finished third, his 10th top-five finish of the season.
- Will Power finished a career-best fourth. His previous best was eighth at St. Petersburg.
- Oriol Servia tied his career-best finish with a fifth. He also was fifth at Richmond.
- Vitor Meira finished sixth for the second consecutive race.
- Darren Manning finished eighth, his third consecutive top-10 finish.
- Jaime Camara tied his career-best finish with a 14th. He also was 14th at Richmond.
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