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IndyCar Dual in Detroit preview and predictions

By Brittany Frederick

Jun 5, 2016; Detroit, MI, USA; Team Penske driver Simon Pagenaud (22) of France rounds turn eight during the Chevrolet Dual in Detroit Race 2 at The Raceway at Belle Isle Park. Mandatory Credit: Raj Mehta-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 5, 2016; Detroit, MI, USA; Team Penske driver Simon Pagenaud (22) of France rounds turn eight during the Chevrolet Dual in Detroit Race 2 at The Raceway at Belle Isle Park. Mandatory Credit: Raj Mehta-USA TODAY Sports /
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Can Simon Pagenaud rise again during this year’s Dual in Detroit? We preview and predict Rounds 7 and 8 of the Verizon IndyCar Series season.

The Dual in Detroit is the busiest weekend of the Verizon IndyCar Series season. Coming off the massive challenge of the Indy 500, teams then have to turn around in less than a week and run not one but two races atThe Raceway at Belle Isle Park.

We don’t know where any team will line up in Detroit, as qualifying for each race happens on the same morning as the race—further compression the time frame that each IndyCar organization has to work with. But the Dual in Detroit puts every time to the test by doubling their workload and seeing who can deal with the extra pressure.

It’s also in the backyard of Chevrolet, which has been IndyCar’s dominant manufacturer for the last several years. But Honda has come roaring back in 2017 so will the party at Chevy’s place be taken over by Honda? Or will the Dual in Detroit be another feather in the cap for Chevrolet in front of their home crowd?

WEATHER FORECAST:

The weather looks good for Saturday’s race, with Weather.com indicating a high of 78 degrees with clouds at Belle Isle Park. Things get a bit more interesting on Sunday with a 40 percent chance of rain and a high of 85 degrees. Rain missed last week’s race at Indianapolis, though, so maybe IndyCar will get lucky two weeks in a row.

THREE THINGS TO WATCH:

  • Scott Dixon: The four-time champion will be back in the car for both Dual in Detroit races after the vicious crash that took him out of the Indy 500. If that’s not being competitive, we don’t know what is.
  • Simon Pagenaud’s track record: The reigning Verizon IndyCar Series champion hasn’t had as nearly dominating a year as he did last year, but he’s coming to a place where he captured both pole positions and led the most laps in both races in 2016. He had one big problem, though: he couldn’t turn either of those performances into wins. So can Pagenaud not only repeat that success, but improve upon it?
  • The newcomer: Dale Coyne Racing surprised IndyCar fans when they chose ex-Formula 1 driver Esteban Gutierrez to fill their open seat this weekend. Gutierrez has never driven in IndyCar before. He’s never tested in IndyCar before. His F1 career left something to be desired, including ticking off some of his fellow drivers. So he is absolutely a wild card and he’s driving a car that’s already been wrecked once.

PREDICTION:

Based on the combined practice results from Friday, Team Penske is once again running their Chevrolets up front. Helio Castroneves topped the practice charts, with Simon Pagenaud in fourth, Josef Newgarden in sixth and Will Power in eighth. It’s no surprise to see Roger Penske’s team do well in possibly their second-biggest event of the season.

But the Hondas are right up there with them including a pair of drivers on hot streaks. Alexander Rossi ran up front for large portions of the 500 and was third fastest, and newly crowned Indy 500 winner Takuma Sato is quietly sitting in seventh. So Andretti Autosport may be carrying their speed through to at least the first portion of the doubleheader.

It’s hard to argue against Castroneves, though. He was the runner-up at Indy, and already has two Verizon P1 Awards across six races. He’s constantly looked fast; he just can’t close the deal. With one of the two race winners from 2016 not competing, as well, that mixes up the picture. We think Castroneves captures his first win in one part of the Dual in Detroit, and that Alexander Rossi will get his second IndyCar win in the second part.

Next: Esteban Gutierrez making IndyCar debut in Detroit

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