Starting from pole in the second Chevrolet Indy Dual in Detroit race today at Belle Isle, Mike Conway once again appeared to have the car to beat after destroying the field in yesterday’s first doubleheader race. But a potential sweep in the Motor City – which would’ve also earned him a $50,000 bonus – was not to be for the Dale Coyne Racing driver, who had to settle for third place behind race winner Simon Pagenaud and fellow Englishman James Jakes in second.
Nonetheless, Conway, in a one-off role for DCR this weekend on Belle Isle, showed just how much of a dynamite road/street racer he is. He insists that he’ll never again race an open-wheel machine on an oval – something he gave up shortly before last year’s season finale at Fontana, California – but when it comes to racing on IndyCar’s twisty tracks, he’s now thoroughly established himself as a force to be reckoned with.
Conway momentarily lost the lead to Will Power while A.J. Allmendinger crashed on the opening lap, but got it right back on the next restart and maintained it through the ragged opening stages of Race 2. He and Scott Dixon pitted from first and second positions during the caution after a 10-car pileup on Lap 28, and Conway would eventually cycle back to the front on Lap 40 when Tristan Vautier abandoned the lead to come to pit road.
Six laps later, Conway was passed by Charlie Kimball just before he made his final stop of the day on Lap 47. When everything shook out following the stops, Conway was left in third position behind Jakes. As Pagenaud widened his insurmountable lead in the closing circuits, the two Brits battled for the runner-up spot before Jakes won out narrowly.
“It was a lot of fun,” said Conway. “It didn’t quite go our way today though. The right rear tire went down on reds, and I lost spots to Kimball and later Pagenaud. On the blacks, I pushed as hard as I could. I passed like six cars in one lap at one point. We didn’t quite have enough at the end; used our last push-to-pass too early.”
His IndyCar work is done for now, with his next likely appearance at Toronto’s doubleheader in July – Conway all but confirmed it during the post-race press conference. In the interim, Conway will shift focus back to his full-time sports car duties in the FIA World Endurance Championship. He and his No. 26 G-Drive Racing Oreca/Nissan teammates Roman Rusinov and John Martin make up one of 22 LMP2 entries slated for this year’s running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans on June 22.
