Conway tire gamble pays off with victory in IndyCar race 2 in Toronto

HONDA INDY TORONTO POST-RACE 2 QUOTE SHEET

MIKE CONWAY (No. 20 Fuzzy’s Vodka/Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet): “It was really difficult conditions and we were kind of struggling out there for a bit and then I knew as soon as I could see the dry line I knew it was time to come in, and it was a great call. And the guys were up for it. I wasn’t sure what they were going to say so from there we just kind of took off and just controlled the race. A bit nervous with the red flag there but I knew with Justin behind me, I knew we would be able to cover it. It was good fun out there.” (About going onto slicks early) “It was really good. The tire temperatures came in really fast and that’s what you need in those types of conditions so I could just control it and not have to push too hard and enjoy those last few laps.”

CARLOS HUERTAS (No. 18 Dale Coyne Racing Honda): “The first race today I should have had a stronger finish, but I made a mistake that cost me that chance. In Race 2 we went for strategy on the wet tires at the end and it was working well. At the end if we had the yellow period we expected I would have had another strong finish. We risked it and it didn’t pay off this time. I am really happy with the risk we took to try to get on the podium and the team did a great job. I hope we can have better luck at the end next time.”

GRAHAM RAHAL (No. 15 National Guard Honda): “I felt I was driving a pretty good race again and went down the back straight. I had a run on Ryan Hunter-Reay. I had just hit push to pass and went to pull sixth gear and the car just stopped. I don’t know what happened but something in the gear box is broken, at least that’s my guess. It can’t seem to find a gear. When I went through the accident scene there at the end it went into neutral. I couldn’t get it back going. It’s really tough (for) these National Guard guys. We’ve been working our butts off and, the luck, we just don’t have any so I don’t know what I’ve done wrong. Something apparently. But it’s going to end soon and I think you’ll see us on the top side of the podium soon.”

LUCA FILIPPI (No. 16 Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda): “Everything went well at the beginning. We had a great start and great setup. Actually we were very fast then there was a yellow and everything went well. Then I made a mistake. It was a small one but it cost me quite a lot, especially because they didn’t let me pack up before the end of the yellow. Then we were in a bit of a situation where we were running fifth and then we were in the back and suddenly there was a yellow again. And there was a chance to go for slicks (tires) or stay on wet tires. It was a bit of a difficult choice but we decided to stay on (rain tires) and got fourth again, but unfortunately it stopped raining and the tires, in the end, weren’t the right choice. We tried the gamble though. Then I also got a puncture when I was hit from behind. After that we all had to go to slicks. At the end of the day what I can say is that our performance has always been very good through the whole weekend, through qualifying, what we did this morning in the first race and also in the second race. All the time we were very fast. This is not the result I wanted, but at least we proved that me and the Rahal Letterman Lanigan team together can do well. We are developing a great relationship and I am really pleased with everyone in the team. I really hope we can work together again in the future.”

SIMON PAGENAUD (No. 77 Schmidt Peterson Hamilton Motorsports Honda): “We had a mechanical issue in our electronics, and it was really a shame. We had a car to win today. We were super-fast in the wet, and I think we were the fastest car all weekend. It’s a big step back for us in the championship though, and we can’t do that at this point of the season. It’s hard to digest that, but we’ll bounce back with the same approach we took here. The good thing is we’re strong at Mid-Ohio.”

RYAN BRISCOE (No. 8 NTT DATA Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet): “It was another disappointing finish for the No. 8 NTT DATA Chevrolet. We were running so well all race and then that last incident just completely took us out of it. We did some major damage to the right rear bumper and the front wing and just couldn’t make up all of those positions that we lost. We’ll keep looking forward and hopefully our test next week at Mid-Ohio will help us in a few weekends when we race there.”

CHARLIE KIMBALL (No. 83 Levemir FlexTouch Chevrolet): “When it really mattered there at the end, the No. 83 Levemir FlexTouch Chevrolet was quick. I have to give a huge amount of credit to the Novo Nordisk Chip Ganassi Racing crew – they just always seem to get it right with the strategy. It was really nice to see a couple of Chip Ganassi cars up there in front and at one point it looked even better when we were all running third-sixth. It was tough conditions with the rain and concrete patches on the track, but we were able to push through all of the elements and make some passes at the right times. I’ll take the fourth place, especially heading into Mid-Ohio.”

SCOTT DIXON (No. 9 Target Chip Ganassi Chevrolet): “It wasn’t the result we had hoped for but we were in a good position most of the day. The Target cars were fast and we were running three-four there behind the Penske cars and it was shaping up to be a showdown. We got caught up in the wreck at the end which dropped us back, but we kept the car running so it could have been much worse I guess.”

TONY KANAAN (No. 10 Target Chip Ganassi Chevrolet): “I made a little mistake on the start. I got too excited and I had to make it up. We went from dead last to third to second so I’m extremely happy and, again, I’ve got to thank the fans. You guys are awesome. Hanging around for two days, I know it was painful. It was painful for us but we made it. Hopefully you guys enjoyed the show.” (About going from last to second place) “You have to believe. You can’t give up. We’re here racing. I hate when I make mistakes, so I had to make it up. I didn’t want to go back to the truck and look at Chip and say, ‘Hey man, I made a mistake.’ So I had to make it up. It worked well for us. Conway did a great job. A great weekend for Chevy. Swept the podium twice. Top three twice. We’re getting closer. I really want to give Chip a win so bad and Target.”

SEBASTIAN SAAVEDRA (No. 17 Automatic Fire Sprinklers KV AFS Chevrolet): “It wasn’t a very positive weekend for us. We were unable to really find the pace in qualifying yesterday. And then in Race 2 this afternoon we had some kind of mechanical issue that prevented me from really racing. Unfortunately this situation ended our race later on. We will move forward from this and keep the team’s spirits positive. We still have some important races ahead where we can get good results and points towards the championship.”

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