Fansided

2019 Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg: 3 IndyCar takeaways

By Brittany Frederick

Josef Newgarden celebrates after winning the 2019 Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg. Photo Credit: Joe Skibinski/Courtesy of IndyCar.
Josef Newgarden celebrates after winning the 2019 Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg. Photo Credit: Joe Skibinski/Courtesy of IndyCar. /
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What can IndyCar fans learn from the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg? Here are takeaways from the first race of the 2019 IndyCar season.

The 2019 Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg is in the books, and NTT IndyCar Series fans are happy to be back to racing. Team Penske’s Josef Newgarden benefited from a sharp strategy call to nab his first-ever win at St. Petersburg, surprising many after his teammate Will Power looked like the driver to beat in the season opener.

But Newgarden’s victory wasn’t the only thing worth talking about from the 2019 IndyCar season debut. Sunday’s race unraveled several different talking points, and they weren’t all about results; it was as much a story about who didn’t finish as it was who did.

Click through this slideshow for FanSided’s post-race breakdown of the 2019 Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, and what fans can take away from this race for the rest of the season.

IndyCar
The No. 28 Andretti Autosport DHL Honda of Ryan Hunter-Reay is serviced on pit lane. Photo Credit: Karl Zemlin/Courtesy of IndyCar. /

Honda still has engine problems to figure out

Even though Honda won the manufacturers’ championship in 2018, their season also had its fair share of problems — namely engines that just stopped working. Despite rigorous offseason tests, the same problem reared its ugly head during the race on Sunday.

Engine failures took out two of the top contenders early in the afternoon. Defending race winner Sebastien Bourdais, looking for his third consecutive victory in his hometown of St. Petersburg, instead saw his No. 18 Dale Coyne Racing with Vasser-Sullivan Honda pack up and leave town with just six points.

Meanwhile, Ryan Hunter-Reay had been fast throughout the practice sessions leading up to the Firestone Grand Prix and secured himself a comfortable starting spot in the third row. But it took less than 20 laps for his No. 28 Andretti Autosport DHL Honda to similarly die, causing him to end up just ahead of Bourdais with a mere seven points to start the season.

It’s worth noting that two other Honda drivers finished in the Top 5, but that doesn’t excuse the fact that two excellent drivers were taken out because of equipment failure. That’s not a good look for Honda after snagging its first manufacturers’ title since 2013, especially since it appears to be a continuation of an ongoing problem. With two weeks before the next IndyCar race, hopefully there’s time to get this resolved — for good.