Mercedes make biggest gains since 2012, Williams lose most

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Having been the fifth-quickest team on average last year Mercedes have leaped to the front of the field on pure performance in 2013.

An analysis of the fastest lap times set by all the teams at every track on the calendar so far this year shows Mercedes set the quickest time at eight out of ten races. More often than not they delivered on that potential, setting seven pole positions so far.

On average Mercedes were just 0.05% off the quickest lap time set at every race so far this year. Red Bull are next quickest, 0.3% off, and there’s little to choose between Lotus and Ferrari who have both been 0.66% off the pace on average.

McLaren, who were the quickest team over a single lap on average last year, have slumped to sixth-quickest in terms of pure speed, even falling behind Force India.

But Williams have lost even more performance since last year. They have been almost 2.5% slower over a lap than the pace setters, gaining 1.5% since last year.

The table below shows how far away each team has been from the fastest lap time set at each race weekend this year, as a percentage, and how that has changed since last year:

Team 2013* 2012 Difference
Mercedes 0.05 0.87 -0.82
Red Bull 0.337 0.38 -0.043
Lotus 0.656 0.68 -0.024
Ferrari 0.657 0.75 -0.093
Force India 1.37 1.16 +0.21
McLaren 1.487 0.18 +1.307
Toro Rosso 1.608 1.82 -0.212
Sauber 2.014 1.15 +0.864
Williams 2.467 0.96 +1.507
Caterham 4.25 3.49 +0.76
Marussia 4.322 4.83 -0.508

*First ten races

See the full breakdown of how close to the pace each team has been at each track

Roger Penske discusses flying tire at Indy 500 with Dallara executives: ‘We’ve got to fix that’

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INDIANAPOLIS – Roger Penske spoke with Dallara executives Monday morning about the loose tire that went flying over the Indianapolis Motor Speedway catchfence and into a Turn 2 parking lot.

The left-rear wheel from Kyle Kirkwood’s No. 27 Dallara-Honda was sheared off in a collision at speed as Kirkwood tried to avoid the skidding No. 6 Dallara-Chevrolet of Felix Rosenqvist on Lap 183 of the 107th Indianapolis 500.

No one seriously was hurt in the incident (including Kirkwood, whose car went upside down and slid for several hundred feet), though an Indianapolis woman’s Chevy Cruze was struck by the tire. The Indy Star reported a fan was seen and released from the care center after sustaining minor injuries from flying debris in the crash.

During a photo shoot Monday morning with Indy 500 winner Josef Newgarden at the IMS Yard of Bricks, Penske met with Dallara founder and owner Gian Paolo Dallara and Dallara USA CEO Stefano dePonti. The Italian company has been the exclusive supplier of the current DW12 chassis to the NTT IndyCar series for 11 years.

“The good news is we didn’t have real trouble with that tire going out (of the track),” Penske, who bought Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 2020, told a few reporters shortly afterward. “I saw it hit. When it went out, I saw we were OK. I talked to the Dallara guys today. We’re going to look at that, but I guess the shear (force) from when (Rosenqvist’s) car was sitting, (Kirkwood’s car) went over and just that shear force tore that tether. Because we have tethers on there, and I’ve never seen a wheel come off.

“That to me was probably the scariest thing. We’ve got to fix that. We’ve got to fix that so that doesn’t happen again.”

Asked by NBC Sports if IndyCar would be able to address it before Sunday’s Detroit Grand Prix or before the next oval race at Iowa Speedway, Penske said, “The technical guys should look at it. I think the speed here, a couple of hundred (mph) when you hit it vs. 80 or 90 or whatever it might be, but that was a pinch point on the race.”

In a statement released Monday to WTHR and other media outlets, IndyCar said that it was “in possession of the tire in Sunday’s incident and found that the tether did not fail. This is an isolated incident, and the series is reviewing to make sure it does not happen again. IndyCar takes the safety of the drivers and fans very seriously. We are pleased and thankful that no one was hurt.”

IndyCar provided no further explanation for how the wheel was separated from the car without the tether failing.

IndyCar began mandating wheel suspension tethers using high-performance Zylon material after a flying tire killed three fans at Charlotte Motor Speedway during a May 1, 1999 race. Three fans also were struck and killed by a tire at Michigan International Speedway during a July 26, 1998 race.

The IndyCar tethers can withstand a force of more than 22,000 pounds, and the rear wheel tethers were strengthened before the 2023 season.