IndyCar 2017 driver review: James Hinchcliffe - MotorSportsTalk

MotorSportsTalk continues its annual review of the Verizon IndyCar Series drivers that raced in 2017. James Hinchcliffe was an unlucky 13th in 2017 despite a popular, storybook return to victory lane at Long Beach.

James Hinchcliffe, No. 5 Schmidt Peterson Motorsports Honda

2016: 13th Place, Best Finish 2nd, 1 Pole, 3 Podiums, 4 Top-5, 9 Top-10, 217 Laps Led, 10.9 Avg. Start, 10.8 Avg. Finish
2017: 13th Place, 1 Win, Best Start 3rd, 3 Podiums, 3 Top-5, 7 Top-10, 50 Laps Led, 9.6 Avg. Start, 12.6 Avg. Finish

It was a frustrating season for the “Mayor of Hinchtown,” with a popular win early at Long Beach and a second straight podium on home soil in Toronto often overshadowed by myriad mechanical issues. Perhaps fittingly, Hinchcliffe ended an unlucky 13th in points for a second straight season.

On the whole, the SPM team was mystified as to where much of its 2016 speed went, and the team appeared stretched thin with some of its personnel running the 2018 Dallara universal aero kit test program. It also didn’t help Hinchcliffe any he had a rotating driver in the second car; any of Mikhail Aleshin, Robert Wickens, Sebastian Saavedra or Jack Harvey was saddled up alongside from Road America onwards.

Hinchcliffe’s first half of the year, when the stability was there with both cars, was better than his second. In the first eight races he averaged a 7.6 starting spot and banked four of his seven top-10 finishes for the year. In the second half, the grid spot dropped to 11.2 and he only had one top-five finish, that third place at Toronto – aided by a well-timed caution. His double points score hurt him more than any other full-time driver, too. Scoring only 49 points from the two races in Indianapolis and Sonoma was just 23rd among all drivers, behind five part-time drivers, as mechanical issues took him out of both races. To put that in context, Hinchcliffe earned 42 points alone for his 2016 Indianapolis 500 pole position, thanks to the race’s enhanced focus on qualifying points.

Granted, Hinchcliffe was unlucky to lose a potential win in the St. Petersburg season opener owing to a caution he was on the wrong side of, and ninth was unrepresentative of his pace there. He delivered one of the year’s funniest one-liners in Texas, retorting to Chip Ganassi’s allegations he was the one to blame for triggering an eight-car pileup just past halfway with a simple, “that’s adorable.” And he somehow managed to pull off the save of the season at Pocono, crossed up at 200 mph in Turn 1 but keeping it out of the wall.

The Canadian tried to be the diplomatic good soldier at every opportunity and remained the consummate professional. But you could tell this was a driver frustrated with his situation – particularly as he entered the free agent market over the second half of the year and then watched a lot of open doors close in the process. His marketability remains second to none in this series but it’s a shame he hasn’t yet put together a proper title-contending year. Given his talent level, it’s surprising he’s never finished higher than eighth in points over seven total seasons and more than 100 starts. Paired together with longtime friend and countryman Wickens next year, hopes are high for a turnaround.

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Jett Lawrence remains perfect in the Pro Motocross series after recording another perfect round at Hangtown in Rancho Cordova, California. In his second start on a 450, Lawrence won his second National with his fourth consecutive moto win. It is getting increasingly difficult to find the right superlatives to describe the exploits on the reigning 250 West Supercross champion.

“The track was so brutal out there,” Lawrence told NBC Sports Jason Thomas. “The bike handles amazing even when it’s not too friendly. You had to be really patient; you couldn’t take too much. I didn’t eat enough before that second moto. I kind of lost energy halfway through, but luckily I could use technique and balance and just keep that flow going.”

Lawrence leaves Hangtown with an 18-point advantage over Ferrandis in the 450 Motocross standings, but perhaps more importantly, he climbed to 19th in the SuperMotocross standings and should he stay there, he has an automatic invitation to the Main events in the SMX Championship.

“On this track, you just have to manage,” Lawrence continued. “If you try to take too much and not respect the track, it will bite you very quickly. It was humbling on the first few laps. I got kicked on the cutout at the start of the third section, the tabletop going to the left. I had to get my focus because the boys were coming.”

Still in his first few races since returning from a concussion suffered at Houston in the Supercross series, Dylan Ferrandis finished second with results of third in Moto 1 and second in Moto 2. While Ferrandis was happy with the result, he remains hopeful that he will contend for victory shortly.

“The first moto was very hard for my physically, Ferrandis said. “I got arm pump and when you get arm pump your body gets tired. But I’m very happy because we made a big change for the second moto. We tried stuff every session today and in the last moto the bike was much better, but unfortunately I wasn’t sure what I could do with this bike because the track was very hard and difficult to pass.”

RESULTS: How they finished in the 450 Overall at Hangtown

With the rash of injuries at the end of the Supercross season, the podium was filled with heartwarming stories. Cooper Webb returned to action last week in Pala and failed to make the podium. He is steadily improving with a third-place finish in Hangtown. after finishing with a 4-2.

“It’s incredible what seven days can do,” Webb said. “Last week I felt like I was going to get lapped in the second moto. This week, I could see the leader. It was nice. I fought hard, learned how to suffer again there and that felt nice.

Moto 2 wasn’t pretty for Lawrence. On several occasions in the opening laps, he nearly high sided as he rode the front wheel through the ruts. The reward was worth the risk. By the halfway point, Lawrence had 4.5-second lead over Webb, who was embroiled in a tight three-rider battle for second with his teammate Aaron Plessinger pressuring him and Ferrandis ready to take advantage if those made contact.

It took 20 minutes for Plessinger to get around Webb and once he did, he trailed Lawrence by four seconds. But then, with three minutes remaining, Plessinger crashed and had difficulty restarting the bike, handing second back to Webb who has seven seconds behind Lawrence. Plessinger fell to fourth with results of third and sixth.

Adam Cianciarulo rounded out the top five with a 5-4.

Heartbreak for Aaron Plessinger as he was charging forward 💔#ProMotocross #SuperMotocross #HangtownMX pic.twitter.com/vQtKIsuhVg

— Pro Motocross (@ProMotocross) June 4, 2023

Last week Hunter Lawrence won the overall with a 3-1. He repeated that feat in Hangtown in an exact replica of his Fox Raceway results last week. In Moto 1, Lawrence got off to a slow start and lost 10 seconds in the opening laps. Forced to overcome a sixth-place position in the race at the end of Lap 1, he once again caught the riders ahead of him when the field hit heavy traffic. For the second week, scored another 3-1 for the Hangtown National win.

“The start was crucial’ I knew I had to go,” Lawrence told NBC Sports’ Jason Thomas. “They laid a lot of water down, so I didn’t want to be behind any longer than [I was]. First hot one of the year, was a bit of a wakeup call, so I’m happy to get out of here safe and healthy.”

Lawrence’s third-place finish in Moto 1 featured a fierce battle for final spot on the podium when he caught Spain’s Guillem Farres and France’s Tom Vialle. With Lawrence hailing from Australia, the international nature of the sport was highlighted.

Lawrence left Hangtown with a 10-point advantage over Haiden Deegan in the Pro Motocross championship battle.

Click here for 250 overall results

Justin Cooper finished second in both motos to finish second overall. Hangtown represented a huge improvement from Fox Raceway where he finished fifth overall with a 5-4 finish in the two motos. Cooper pressured Haiden Deegan in the second half of Moto 1 and he earned the holeshot in the second moto and stayed within three seconds of Lawrence in that race.

“He was following me a little bit, checking out my lines, seeing where he was better,” Cooper said. “It’s disappointing to give up the lead like that but it was way better than last weekend. I will definitely take two seconds. I want to be on the top of the step. I feel like I get close to the top step but I never get it done. That’s building up the frustration – the fire. I really want to get one of these wins, so it’s time to start digging.”

Haiden Deegan earned the first holeshot of his career in Moto 1 and rode away from the field, building a four-second lead in the opening laps. Cooper trimmed the lead at the halfway point and for a while it leveled off at two seconds. Then Cooper made another charge with three to go and closed to within a second. Deegan was biding his time, however.

“I was saving a little. I knew at the end Justin was going to try and put a charge on. I let him get up close and then sent it super hard at the end to break him a little at the end.”

Deegan’s first moto win comes in only his fourth National and he remains perfect in regard to podiums this year.

“This was a dream since I was a little kid, to win,” Deegan said. “And in my fourth race, it’s gnarly. I was just sending it. I was getting a little tired at the end becasue I left my mouth open the whole time. It’s unreal; I’m so hyped. I wanted to win bad and I proved it to you guys.”

Chaos erupted in turn 1 in Moto 2 Jeremy Martin went and another rider ran over his arm. Michael Mosiman crashed further down the track on that same lap. Both riders were helped off course by the Alpinestars Medical team.

Deegan grabs his first 250 Mx moto win!1️⃣#ProMotocross #SuperMotocross #HangtownMX pic.twitter.com/1FH5s1ZHfn

— Pro Motocross (@ProMotocross) June 3, 2023