Honda GP of St. Pete postponed due to weather conditions
With a torrential downpour of rain and lightning hitting the Tampa Bay area and creating areas of standing water all over the Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg street circuit, it was an easy call for the IRL to postpone the second race of the 2010 IZOD IndyCar Series championship to tomorrow morning.
The rain is expected to continue through the night but start to taper off in the early morning hours. The green flag will fly at 10 a.m. ET and the league has announced that all general admission sections will be free for fans (grandstand/suite tickets will continue to be honored). ESPN2 will carry TV coverage starting at race time, while IMS Radio Network coverage will start at 9:30 a.m. ET according to a tweet from IMSRN reporter Kevin Lee.
In a statement to the press, IRL president of competition Brian Barnhart cited multiple affected areas on the track such as the infield of the Turn 13-14 hairpin, the inside grass area at Turns 1 and 2, and a spot of water at the exit of pit road that has hidden the asphalt and grass line.
“While our cars are equipped to run in the rain, we take the safety of our teams, event workers and fans very seriously,” Barnhart said. “And with those conditions, even with the Firestone Firehawk rain tires and rain lights that we have, visibility would still be an issue. Checking the radar, there’s still heavy rain coming and anticipation of the rain continuing through the middle of the night, through maybe 3 and 4 a.m. [ET].
“So we just felt it was in the best interest of everybody. And even if it stopped raining right now and cleared up, the standing water and rivers that are out there would take a couple of hours to clear up the way it’s raining right now.”
The severe weather emerged in the final stages of J.K. Vernay’s victory in the Firestone Indy Lights undercard. As the Frenchman took the checkered flag, fans were asked by track announcers to evacuate the grandstands and seek shelter in covered buildings on the course, including the Mahaffey Theater and the Progress Energy Park baseball stadium.
The IZOD IndyCar Series race was slated for a 3:45 p.m. ET start today, but as the storm continued to play out, the IRL delayed the start before they announced around 4 p.m. ET that the 100-lap event would go to Monday.
Drivers expressed disappointment, but also said that safety was the top priority for themselves and for fans.
“If we were to go out and try to race, maybe there would only be one car that would finish,” said Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing’s Hideki Mutoh, who will start 12th. “The fans deserve to see a good race, so I hope the ones that were here are able to come back.”
“I went around [the track] with Dario (Franchitti) and Brian Barnhart, and it was nowhere near racing conditions,” said Sarah Fisher Racing’s Graham Rahal, who will start 16th and tweeted that there was “at least six inches of water in some areas.”
“I love driving in the rain and would have been the first to do it, but today it wasn’t meant to be. Now we will focus on preparing ourselves and making everything better for tomorrow.”
This is the first time an IZOD IndyCar Series event has been postponed to another day since Danica Patrick’s victory at Twin Ring Motegi in 2008. That race was moved from April 19 to April 20 due to water from previous rains seeping through to the surface of the Japanese oval.
Will Power of Team Penske starts from the pole tomorrow, with Andretti Autosport’s Tony Kanaan on the outside of the front row. Defending St. Petersburg champion Ryan Briscoe will have to make a big charge to the front from the 19th starting position.
