2021 Bommarito Automotive Group 500

The 2021 Bommarito Automotive Group 500 was an IndyCar motor race held on August 21, 2021, at the World Wide Technology Raceway.[1] It was the 13th round of the 2021 IndyCar Series.

United States 2021 Bommarito Automotive Group 500
Race details
13th round of the 2021 IndyCar season
DateAugust 21, 2021
Official nameBommarito Automotive Group 500
LocationWorld Wide Technology Raceway, Madison, Illinois
CoursePermanent racing facility
1.25 mi / 2.01 km
Distance260 laps
325 mi / 522.6 km
Pole position
DriverAustralia Will Power (Team Penske)
Time00:49.8289 (total time from 2 laps)
Fastest lap
DriverJapan Takuma Sato (Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing)
Time00:25.7998 (on lap 195 of 260)
Podium
FirstUnited States Josef Newgarden (Team Penske)
SecondMexico Pato O'Ward (Arrow McLaren SP)
ThirdAustralia Will Power (Team Penske)

Josef Newgarden of Team Penske won his second race of the season, ahead of Arrow McLaren SP driver Pato O'Ward in second and polesitter Will Power in third.[2]

Background

INDYCAR used only the Saturday of the two-day event, with NASCAR Truck Series racing on Friday and INDYCAR on Saturday, starting at noon and ending on the night of August 21, 2021. It was held one week after the Big Machine Spiked Coolers Grand Prix at Indianapolis and three weeks before the Grand Prix of Portland. It was the last oval race of the 2021 season.

Josef Newgarden was the previous race winner, having won the second race in the 2020 double-header event.

Championship standings before the race

Álex Palou remained top of the standings with a 21-point gap over Pato O'Ward, despite his dismal 27th-place finish at the Big Machine Spiked Coolers Grand Prix. O'Ward, who finished fifth in that race, moved up to second, as Scott Dixon was demoted to third, sitting above Josef Newgarden in fourth and Marcus Ericsson in fifth.

Entrants

24 drivers entered the race. IndyCar rookie Jimmie Johnson was replaced by Tony Kanaan, who had signed with the team to race in the season's oval races in place of Johnson.[3] Ed Carpenter returned to pilot the No. 20 in a similar deal, replacing Conor Daly, who went to drive the No. 59 Carlin.[4]

Rookie Romain Grosjean participated in his first oval race, after initially only signing with Dale Coyne Racing to race in road and street courses.[5]

Key Meaning
 R  Rookie
 W  Past winner
No.DriverTeamEngine
2United States Josef Newgarden  W Team PenskeChevrolet
3New Zealand Scott McLaughlin  R Team PenskeChevrolet
4Canada Dalton KellettA. J. Foyt EnterprisesChevrolet
5Mexico Patricio O'WardArrow McLaren SPChevrolet
7Sweden Felix RosenqvistArrow McLaren SPChevrolet
8Sweden Marcus EricssonChip Ganassi RacingHonda
9New Zealand Scott Dixon  W Chip Ganassi RacingHonda
10Spain Álex PalouChip Ganassi RacingHonda
12Australia Will Power  W Team PenskeChevrolet
14France Sébastien BourdaisA. J. Foyt EnterprisesChevrolet
15United States Graham RahalRahal Letterman Lanigan RacingHonda
18United Arab Emirates Ed JonesDale Coyne Racing with Vasser-SullivanHonda
20United States Ed CarpenterEd Carpenter RacingChevrolet
21Netherlands Rinus VeeKayEd Carpenter RacingChevrolet
22France Simon PagenaudTeam PenskeChevrolet
26United States Colton HertaAndretti Autosport with Curb-AgajanianHonda
27United States Alexander RossiAndretti AutosportHonda
28United States Ryan Hunter-ReayAndretti AutosportHonda
29Canada James HinchcliffeAndretti Steinbrenner AutosportHonda
30Japan Takuma Sato  W Rahal Letterman Lanigan RacingHonda
48Brazil Tony KanaanChip Ganassi RacingHonda
51France Romain Grosjean  R Dale Coyne Racing with Rick Ware RacingHonda
59United States Conor DalyCarlinChevrolet
60United Kingdom Jack HarveyMeyer Shank RacingHonda

Practice

Practice took place at 1:15 PM ET[1] and ended with Josef Newgarden topping the charts, with a lap time of 00:25.1715.[6]

Top Practice Speeds
Pos No. Driver Team Engine Lap Time
1 2 United States Josef Newgarden Team Penske Chevrolet 00:25.1715
2 3 New Zealand Scott McLaughlin  R  Team Penske Chevrolet 00:25.3280
3 28 United States Ryan Hunter-Reay Andretti Autosport Honda 00:25.3462
Source:[7]

Qualifying

Qualifying was held at 5:00 PM ET.[1] Each driver set two laps in the session. Positions were then determined based on the total time of those two laps.

Will Power won pole position, with a total time of 00:49.8289.[8]

Qualifying classification

Pos No. Driver Team Engine Lap 1 Lap 2 Total Time Final
grid
1 12 Australia Will Power  W  Team Penske Chevrolet 00:24.9781 00:24.8508 00:49.8289 1
2 26 United States Colton Herta Andretti Autosport with Curb-Agajanian Honda 00:24.9231 00:24.9306 00:49.8537 2
3 2 United States Josef Newgarden  W  Team Penske Chevrolet 00:25.0090 00:24.8499 00:49.8589 3
4 22 France Simon Pagenaud Team Penske Chevrolet 00:24.9417 00:24.9564 00:49.8981 4
5 5 Mexico Pato O'Ward Arrow McLaren SP Chevrolet 00:25.0855 00:24.9441 00:50.0296 5
6 8 Sweden Marcus Ericsson Chip Ganassi Racing Honda 00:24.9860 00:25.0589 00:50.0449 6
7 27 United States Alexander Rossi Andretti Autosport Honda 00:25.0374 00:25.0771 00:50.1145 7
8 9 New Zealand Scott Dixon  W  Chip Ganassi Racing Honda 00:25.1274 00:25.0153 00:50.1427 8
9 15 United States Graham Rahal Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda 00:25.2118 00:25.0674 00:50.2792 9
10 7 Sweden Felix Rosenqvist Arrow McLaren SP Chevrolet 00:25.1950 00:25.1046 00:50.2996 10
11 3 New Zealand Scott McLaughlin  R  Team Penske Chevrolet 00:25.2894 00:25.0142 00:50.3036 11
12 10 Spain Álex Palou Chip Ganassi Racing Honda 00:25.1824 00:25.2156 00:50.3980 211
13 18 United Arab Emirates Ed Jones Dale Coyne Racing with Vasser-Sullivan Honda 00:25.2896 00:25.1644 00:50.4540 12
14 28 United States Ryan Hunter-Reay Andretti Autosport Honda 00:25.2011 00:25.2594 00:50.4605 13
15 51 France Romain Grosjean  R  Dale Coyne Racing with Rick Ware Racing Honda 00:25.1837 00:25.3157 00:50.4994 14
16 60 United Kingdom Jack Harvey Meyer Shank Racing Honda 00:25.2600 00:25.2763 00:50.5363 15
17 30 Japan Takuma Sato  W  Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda 00:25.2740 00:25.3232 00:50.5972 16
18 48 Brazil Tony Kanaan Chip Ganassi Racing Honda 00:25.3680 00:25.4282 00:50.7962 17
19 14 France Sébastien Bourdais A. J. Foyt Enterprises Chevrolet 00:25.4218 00:25.4606 00:50.8824 18
20 29 Canada James Hinchcliffe Andretti Steinbrenner Autosport Honda 00:25.4631 00:25.4338 00:50.8969 19
21 59 United States Conor Daly Carlin Chevrolet 00:25.4926 00:25.4854 00:50.9780 20
22 20 United States Ed Carpenter Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet 00:25.5659 00:25.4951 00:51.0610 22
23 21 Netherlands Rinus VeeKay Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet 00:25.5544 00:25.5189 00:51.0733 23
24 4 Canada Dalton Kellett A. J. Foyt Enterprises Chevrolet 00:25.8140 00:25.6724 00:51.4864 24
Source:[9]
Notes
  • ^1 Álex Palou received a nine-place grid penalty due to an unapproved engine change. He would start the race 21st.[10]

Race

The race started at 8:00 PM ET.[1] The start, led by Team Penske's Will Power, went underway with no incidents. On lap 2, Power was overtaken by Colton Herta, who assumed the lead of the race. The following lap saw a caution brought out, as Graham Rahal and Ed Jones made contact in Turn 2, sending both drivers into the wall. Both drivers would retire from the race, classifying second last and last respectively. The caution lasted 12 laps. As the race restarted after the caution on lap 15, teammates Josef Newgarden and Simon Pagenaud made contact, damaging the right side of Pagenaud's front wing, which would detach and land on the track, causing another caution that lasted four laps. A light malfunction caused the third caution of the day to be triggered on lap 21, lasting four laps.

On lap 54, Ed Carpenter spun and crashed out of the race in Turn 4, causing the fourth caution of the race, which would last until lap 63. Sébastien Bourdais took the lead of the race, as the front three pitted. Herta lost the effective lead of the race to Newgarden, who exited the pit lane first. Another caution would be declared on lap 65, as Rinus VeeKay crashed into Álex Palou in Turn 1, who then hit the rear of teammate Scott Dixon's car, sending the three into the wall. The race restarted with Newgarden in the lead, after Bourdais made his pit stop.

On lap 139, Herta overtook Newgarden for the lead, but lost it as he pitted on lap 185. Herta would retire from the race as his driveshaft broke during pit exit. On lap 200, Alexander Rossi hit the wall in Turn 2 during his out lap after his final pit stop, ending his race and causing the sixth and final caution of the race, which lasted nine laps. Felix Rosenqvist had a mechanical failure on lap 211, which prompted him to retire from the race.

Josef Newgarden won the race, half a second over Arrow McLaren SP's Pato O'Ward in second. Polesitter Will Power finished third.

Race classification

Pos No. Driver Team Engine Laps Time/Retired Pit
Stops
Grid Laps
Led
Pts.
1 2 United States Josef Newgarden  W  Team Penske Chevrolet 260 2:24:10.9404 3 3 138 53
2 5 Mexico Pato O'Ward Arrow McLaren SP Chevrolet 260 +0.5397 3 5 1 41
3 12 Australia Will Power  W  Team Penske Chevrolet 260 +5.8660 3 1 1 37
4 3 New Zealand Scott McLaughlin  R  Team Penske Chevrolet 260 +6.6620 3 11 32
5 14 France Sébastien Bourdais A. J. Foyt Enterprises Chevrolet 260 +8.9566 2 18 18 31
6 30 Japan Takuma Sato  W  Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda 260 +8.2618 4 16 28
7 28 United States Ryan Hunter-Reay Andretti Autosport Honda 260 +14.0259 4 13 26
8 22 France Simon Pagenaud Team Penske Chevrolet 260 +15.5421 6 4 1 25
9 8 Sweden Marcus Ericsson Chip Ganassi Racing Honda 260 +18.7676 3 6 22
10 60 United Kingdom Jack Harvey Meyer Shank Racing Honda 260 +20.1207 3 15 20
11 59 United States Conor Daly Carlin Chevrolet 260 +22.1036 4 20 19
12 4 Canada Dalton Kellett A. J. Foyt Enterprises Chevrolet 260 +24.5581 5 24 18
13 48 Brazil Tony Kanaan Chip Ganassi Racing Honda 260 +26.8367 4 17 17
14 51 France Romain Grosjean  R  Dale Coyne Racing with Rick Ware Racing Honda 259 +1 Lap 4 14 16
15 29 Canada James Hinchcliffe Andretti Steinbrenner Autosport Honda 243 +17 Laps 7 19 15
16 7 Sweden Felix Rosenqvist Arrow McLaren SP Chevrolet 211 Mechanical 4 10 14
17 27 United States Alexander Rossi Andretti Autosport Honda 200 Contact 3 7 13
18 26 United States Colton Herta Andretti Autosport with Curb-Agajanian Honda 185 Mechanical 3 2 101 13
19 9 New Zealand Scott Dixon  W  Chip Ganassi Racing Honda 100 Contact 2 8 11
20 10 Spain Álex Palou Chip Ganassi Racing Honda 64 Contact 1 21 10
21 21 Netherlands Rinus VeeKay Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet 64 Contact 1 23 9
22 20 United States Ed Carpenter Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet 54 Contact 2 22 8
23 15 United States Graham Rahal Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda 4 Contact 1 9 7
24 18 United Arab Emirates Ed Jones Dale Coyne Racing with Vasser-Sullivan Honda 2 Contact 0 12 6
Fastest lap: Japan Takuma Sato (Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing) – 00:25.7998 (lap 195)
Source:[11]

Championship standings after the race

Pato O'Ward took the championship lead after his second-place finish, with Álex Palou dropping down to second, above race winner Josef Newgarden, who rose to third over Scott Dixon, who was demoted to fourth.

  • Note: Only the top five positions are included.

References

  1. "Bommarito Automotive Group 500". IndyCar.com. Retrieved September 22, 2021.
  2. "Newgarden wins at Gateway, O'Ward takes championship lead – The Race". August 22, 2021. Retrieved September 22, 2021.
  3. "Kanaan to make IndyCar season debut at Texas doubleheader". AP NEWS. April 30, 2021. Retrieved September 22, 2021.
  4. "Daly confirmed for Carlin seat at Gateway". Motorsport Week. August 18, 2021. Retrieved September 22, 2021.
  5. "Grosjean to make his oval IndyCar debut at Gateway". www.motorsport.com. Retrieved September 22, 2021.
  6. "Newgarden Leads as Penske Flexes Muscle in WWTR Practice". IndyCar.com. Retrieved September 22, 2021.
  7. "Practice - Results" (PDF). IndyCar Series. August 21, 2021. Archived (PDF) from the original on August 21, 2021. Retrieved September 24, 2021.
  8. "Power grabs pole at Gateway, Palou starts 21st after grid penalty · RaceFans". RaceFans. August 21, 2021. Retrieved September 23, 2021.
  9. "Qualifications - Results" (PDF). IndyCar Series. August 21, 2021. Archived (PDF) from the original on August 22, 2021. Retrieved September 24, 2021.
  10. "Alex Palou handed penalty ahead of WWT Raceway at Gateway". Racing News. August 21, 2021. Retrieved September 23, 2021.
  11. "Race - Results - Final" (PDF). IndyCar Series. August 21, 2021. Archived (PDF) from the original on August 29, 2021. Retrieved September 24, 2021.
  12. "Points - Indycar Engine" (PDF). motorsports.nbcsports.com. August 21, 2021. Archived (PDF) from the original on August 22, 2021. Retrieved September 24, 2021.
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