IndyCar: There’s been a lot of changes since Houston just last October

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Last year, the Verizon IndyCar Series returned to the streets of Houston for the first time in six years. And already since October, there’s been a lot of changes for the series just in the last eight months:

  • This race marked the end of Dario Franchitti’s career, after his accident.
  • Circuit changes in the name of safety are coming to the track, per a RACER.com report.
  • The race shifts from October, where it was hot and humid through Saturday, then rainy Sunday morning last year before heating up again, to June, where highs are projected in the high 80s to low 90s with 30-40% chances of rain.
  • The IndyCar series name has changed to the Verizon IndyCar Series; the track name has changed from Reliant Park to NRG Park, as part of the M.D Anderson Cancer Center Speedway at NRG Park.
  • This weekend marked Scott Dixon’s most recent victory (Houston Race 1).
  • This weekend marked Justin Wilson and James Hinchcliffe’s most recent podium finishes, and Simona de Silvestro’s only career podium before she left to pursue her Formula One dream.
  • This weekend marked Josef Newgarden’s most recent top-five finish (fifth in Race 1)
  • This race weekend marked Luca Filippi’s most recent starts in the series, and will be his first starts of 2014.

It will be interesting to see if any of those driver stats and the like change coming out of this upcoming doubleheader weekend.

The Houston weekend last year was a tough one to get through for the series, and though improvements are promised for year two of this iteration, Houston still has a lot to prove as an event weekend.

Seattle Supercross by the numbers: Three riders separated by 17 points

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Three riders remain locked in a tight battle with 17 points separating the leader Cooper Webb from third-place Chase Sexton and these are only a few Supercross numbers to consider entering Seattle.

Seattle Supercross numbers
Chase Sexton made a statement in Detroit with his second win of 2023. – Feld Motor Sports

For the fifth time in 10 rounds. Sexton, Webb, and Eli Tomac shared the podium in Detroit. Between them, the trio has taken 23 podiums, leaving only seven for the remainder of the field. Jason Anderson, Ken Roczen and Justin Barcia have two each with Aaron Plessinger scoring the other.

Webb and Tomac won the last four championships with two apiece in alternating years, but they were not one another’s primary rival for most of those seasons. On the average, however, the past four years show an incredible similarity with average points earned of 21.0 for Webb and 21.3 for Tomac. With five wins so far this season, Tomac (23 wins) leads Webb (19) in victories but Webb (43) edges Tomac (41) in podium finishes during this span.

Tomac has won two of the last three Seattle races and those two wins in this stadium are topped only by James Stewart. Fittingly, if Tomac gets a third win this week, he will tie Stewart for second on the all-time wins’ list. Tomac tied Ricky Carmichael for third with 48 wins at Oakland and took sole possession of that spot with his Daytona win.

Sexton still has a lot to say and after winning last week in Detroit, he is speaking up. The Supercross numbers are against him entering Seattle, however, because a points’ deficit this large after Round 10 has been erased only once. In 1983 David Bailey was 47 points behind Bob Hannah, and like Sexton he was also in third place. Bailey took the points’ lead with one race remaining.

The seven points Sexton was penalized last week for jumping in a red cross flag section in Detroit could prove extremely costly.

In fact, it has been a series of mistakes that has cost Sexton the most. In the last two weeks, he lost 10 points with a 10th-place finish to go with his penalty. Erase those, and all three riders hold their fate in their hands.

Plessinger’s heartbreak in Detroit is still fresh, but the upside of his run is that was his best of the season and could turn his fortunes around. Prior to that race, he led only seven laps in three mains. He was up front for 20 laps in Detroit with five of those being the fastest on the track.

Last week’s win by Hunter Lawrence tied him with his brother Jett Lawrence for 17th on the all-time wins’ list. With the focus shifting to 250 West for the next two rounds, Jett has a great opportunity to pull back ahead. The real test will be at the first East / West Showdown in East Rutherford, New Jersey on April 22.

Last Five Seattle Winners

450s
2022: Eli Tomac
2019: Marvin Musquin
2018: Eli Tomac
2017: Marvin Musquin
2014: Ryan Villopoto

250s
2022: Hunter Lawrence
2019: Dylan Ferrandis
2018: Aaron Plessinger
2017: Aaron Plessinger
2014: Cole Seely

By the Numbers

Detroit
Indianapolis
Daytona
Arlington
Oakland
Tampa
Houston
Anaheim 2
San Diego

More SuperMotocross coverage

How to Watch Seattle Supercross
Dylan Ferrandis may return before SX finale
SMX develops “Leader Lights”
Power Rankings after Detroit
Hunter Lawrence defends Haiden Deegan
Results and points after Detroit
Chase Sexton wins in Detroit, penalized seven points