Latest / The Central Indiana Sports Report / IndyCar: Toronto Preview with Elijah Poe (+Qualifying Results & Predictions; Podcast No. 330.1)

Transcript

IndyCar: Toronto Preview with Elijah Poe (+Qualifying Results & Predictions; Podcast No. 330.1) · The Central Indiana Sports Report

• 0:00
  [SPEAKER_01]: What you are listening to now is the Central Indiana Sports Report podcast number three hundred and thirty point one.
• 0:08
  [SPEAKER_01]: Our indie car to run out preview with Elijah Poe, including qualifying results from Saturday and predictions and top story lines going into Sunday's race.
• 0:20
  [SPEAKER_00]: You're listening to the Central Indiana Sports Report with your host, Greg Menkel.
• 0:29
  [SPEAKER_01]: Welcome, Indy Car fans to the Central Indiana Sports Report and our preview for the race in Toronto with Elijah Poe.
• 0:38
  [SPEAKER_01]: Elijah is joining me on the Riverside app and we are going to first review the qualifying and then go over who we think the favorites are and what to expect in Sunday's race.
• 0:50
  [SPEAKER_01]: First, welcome Elijah.
• 0:52
  [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, thanks for having me super excited to see Indie Carb back on a street course and it should be a great race for Toronto.
• 0:59
  [SPEAKER_02]: Usually always provides some of the best racing we see on a street year in and year out.
• 1:04
  [SPEAKER_01]: Also, it seems like there may be a couple of obstacles on the course as well, which should make things interesting.
• 1:11
  [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, a very bumpy, very bumpy this year.
• 1:15
  [SPEAKER_02]: So much so that they actually put in some asphalt overnight, leading up to that turn three, it's a big passing zone.
• 1:22
  [SPEAKER_02]: They got so many complaints from drivers that they had a blast fault.
• 1:26
  [SPEAKER_01]: If you watch the practice, there were one time three cars in the runoff at the same time.
• 1:31
  [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, they were just, they almost looked like bumper cars out there.
• 1:33
  [SPEAKER_02]: The way they're just, once they hit a bump, they catch so much air because they're going so fast.
• 1:38
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
• 1:39
  [SPEAKER_02]: I don't know how to do it.
• 1:40
  [SPEAKER_01]: They're breaking zone.
• 1:41
  [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, I don't know how they do it because it's pretty much the whole lap.
• 1:45
  [SPEAKER_01]: Well, now they've had two days of practice and a qualifying session.
• 1:49
  [SPEAKER_01]: So they know it's there.
• 1:51
  [SPEAKER_01]: So no excuses going in now.
• 1:53
  [SPEAKER_01]: And there's also a spot.
• 1:54
  [SPEAKER_01]: I believe it's in turn six where there's a piece of slippery concrete.
• 2:00
  [SPEAKER_02]: Yes, I heard multiple drivers say yesterday that this is some of the slickest they've ever been in anywhere in Indie car, which is usually surprising.
• 2:08
  [SPEAKER_02]: It's not really what you want to hear, but hey, maybe that provides us for a great race.
• 2:12
  [SPEAKER_01]: It does.
• 2:12
  [SPEAKER_01]: And like I said, they've had plenty of opportunity to get you to it.
• 2:16
  [SPEAKER_01]: They know it's there now.
• 2:17
  [SPEAKER_01]: No excuses anymore.
• 2:23
  [SPEAKER_01]: And here we go, Elijah with the lineup for tomorrow's noon race in Toronto.
• 2:28
  [SPEAKER_01]: course on Fox, very good coverage on the qualifying and practice this week from those guys.
• 2:34
  [SPEAKER_01]: I'm starting to really, I think that crew is starting to really gel.
• 2:41
  [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, they're definitely getting better, even graphic-wise as well.
• 2:44
  [SPEAKER_02]: They added a new graphic where if you're in the top six in your speed as faster than your previous lap, they put a little green box around your name.
• 2:51
  [SPEAKER_02]: It's stuff like that that is really going to bring in new fans.
• 2:54
  [SPEAKER_02]: and it's going to keep both fans wanting to stay just because the product hasn't proved so much and it's only been uh ten races eleven races so really great to see them.
• 3:03
  [SPEAKER_01]: I've often said that they need to uh during the race when a driver moves up a spot put him in green when one moves down a spot put him in red so even if we don't see it we know what's happening you know and we we can actually watch the graphic move and turn from green to red maybe that's the next and the works but that's something that they definitely need to do.
• 3:24
  [SPEAKER_01]: Golden herded the one point seven eight six mile track with eleven turns in fifty nine point eight three two seconds to win the poll no surprise there Elijah.
• 3:36
  [SPEAKER_02]: No super impressive this is his third uh... pull it through on his career and and and in twenty twenty five on street courses he started second at Saint Pete uh... second at
• 3:49
  [SPEAKER_02]: Long Beach, first at Detroit, and now first at Toronto, just incredible, just incredible.
• 3:56
  [SPEAKER_02]: How the Andrade cars as a whole have been moving on street courses, but you got to give credit to Golden Hurtff for stringing it together on every street course this season.
• 4:08
  [SPEAKER_01]: And sometimes the Andrade cars roll out at certain tracks and they're just the best cars there.
• 4:14
  [SPEAKER_01]: And while the rest of his team struggled on Saturday, Elijah, Alex Polo is on the outside of Row One.
• 4:22
  [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, and this is one of his best starting, I think it is the best starting spot he's had at Toronto, and definitely important to be starting up top here.
• 4:29
  [SPEAKER_02]: The last five races one in Toronto, the winners came from the front row, so seeing her and and pull up there, I couldn't think of two better drivers to battle on a street course than those two.
• 4:41
  [SPEAKER_01]: Second row, Marcus Armstrong, who was the fastest of his group in the first round, impressive performance by Meyer Schenk.
• 4:50
  [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, it really is really, really impressive what he's doing.
• 4:53
  [SPEAKER_02]: He's still relatively new to any car series, but he's had these performances sprinkled in throughout his young career where you really just can see how talented he is and no more than having a third place today in qualifying.
• 5:05
  [SPEAKER_02]: That's huge for Meyer Schenk team and he's in top ten in the points as well, so super important.
• 5:11
  [SPEAKER_01]: Pinsky struggled again today, but will power is starting on the outside of road two.
• 5:15
  [SPEAKER_01]: He found something.
• 5:17
  [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, that's a really great result for power.
• 5:19
  [SPEAKER_02]: I'll be interested to see where they can finish tomorrow.
• 5:21
  [SPEAKER_02]: But being in the fast six is very great.
• 5:24
  [SPEAKER_02]: And they brought it up on the Fox broadcast.
• 5:26
  [SPEAKER_02]: Will power hasn't had a poll on a road or street course in three years.
• 5:30
  [SPEAKER_02]: Everywhere else in the last three years, his polls have come from old holes only.
• 5:34
  [SPEAKER_02]: So to see him be up there and P four is a great is a great spot for him to start tomorrow.
• 5:39
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, one point in his career, we were saying, could he win on an oval?
• 5:43
  [SPEAKER_01]: And that's kind of changed in his career.
• 5:48
  [SPEAKER_01]: The inside of row three is Graham Ray Hall great day for that team and for Graham.
• 5:53
  [SPEAKER_02]: I think that was a surprise for everyone seeing Ray Hall up there.
• 5:57
  [SPEAKER_02]: Obviously, RLL was pretty quick to had Louis Foster just got bumped in the fast twelve.
• 6:03
  [SPEAKER_02]: He was so close to making that fast six, but to see Ray hole in fifth, I know he was begging on the on the broadcast for a clean race and that RLL team really needs to keep their nose clean and get a good result here.
• 6:15
  [SPEAKER_01]: And then Kyle Kirkwood, I was saying going into the strategy, he's saving it all for one lap, which is great if you have a perfect lap and he didn't.
• 6:23
  [SPEAKER_01]: So he'll be starting six.
• 6:26
  [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, I really just threw away his own result there with the mistake.
• 6:30
  [SPEAKER_02]: Just got out from underneath them and slid going into going exiting a corner.
• 6:34
  [SPEAKER_02]: So it'll be fun to watch.
• 6:36
  [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, as about to say, regardless, he's going to be good.
• 6:40
  [SPEAKER_02]: And he's definitely going to be contending for a podium.
• 6:43
  [SPEAKER_02]: And I wouldn't be surprised if he is able to challenge pillow and her as well.
• 6:47
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, we'll talk about the top contenders here in a minute, but he will definitely be on that list.
• 6:52
  [SPEAKER_01]: Row four, as you mentioned, Louis Foster, great result.
• 6:55
  [SPEAKER_01]: Marcus Ericsson, the slowest of the Andretis, but still on the outside of Roe Four.
• 7:00
  [SPEAKER_01]: Then Roe Five, Readance Week, a great performance today again for that team.
• 7:05
  [SPEAKER_01]: Second fastest in his opening group.
• 7:08
  [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, excellent.
• 7:08
  [SPEAKER_02]: He continues to string it together.
• 7:11
  [SPEAKER_02]: And he was really close to making that fastics really close.
• 7:14
  [SPEAKER_02]: Just got knocked out by a couple of tents and, you know, in a Dale coin car, I think he might be one of the best drivers of this season.
• 7:22
  [SPEAKER_02]: Just to see the results he's putting in that car, it's incredible.
• 7:26
  [SPEAKER_01]: and then next to him is paddle award.
• 7:28
  [SPEAKER_01]: It's just not McLaren's weekend.
• 7:31
  [SPEAKER_02]: No, and they've they said multiple occasions that they just really struggle around Toronto, but paddle was pretty optimistic and is post qualifying interview.
• 7:39
  [SPEAKER_02]: He said they've got the best race car he's had there in his career.
• 7:42
  [SPEAKER_02]: And how aggressive he is, he's such a skilled driver.
• 7:44
  [SPEAKER_02]: So if he does have a car that can search through the field, he'll be super fun to watch.
• 7:49
  [SPEAKER_01]: Roast six Elijah is Scott Dixon and Kylam.
• 7:53
  [SPEAKER_01]: Kylam, I lot, I lot.
• 7:55
  [SPEAKER_01]: had a great first round and then he was, what was he angry about after his second round?
• 8:00
  [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, he was pretty ticked off.
• 8:02
  [SPEAKER_02]: He called the other drivers on the grid a bunch of muppets for getting in the way of his qualifying runs.
• 8:08
  [SPEAKER_02]: It was like it wasn't it.
• 8:09
  [SPEAKER_02]: It just seems like he wasn't able to string together a full run.
• 8:13
  [SPEAKER_02]: Regardless, the starting p-twelf second fast twelfth for Prima Racing, they've got to be thrilled that there was even if they're hoping it was a little bit better.
• 8:22
  [SPEAKER_01]: No doubt about it.
• 8:23
  [SPEAKER_01]: And again, Elijah, the two guys that we keep calling their season incomplete are starting on the same row, Nolan Seagull and Kiffin Simpson.
• 8:32
  [SPEAKER_01]: Again, a lot of promise for these two on really good teams.
• 8:37
  [SPEAKER_01]: The results just haven't been there.
• 8:38
  [SPEAKER_01]: But you got some news on Nolan Seagull, right?
• 8:41
  [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, Nolan Seagull is he was already confirmed to be in the number six air McLaren seat next year, but today Tony Kanon said he'll be in that seat for twenty twenty six and beyond, which is an interesting.
• 8:53
  [SPEAKER_02]: He hasn't had the greatest results.
• 8:55
  [SPEAKER_02]: He's still pretty new to the series as a whole, but you know, being in a top team like air McLaren, I'd be interested to see where he can end some of these races to close out his season in twenty twenty five and maybe maybe have a nice top five or
• 9:08
  [SPEAKER_02]: Maybe even a podium is for stretching it.
• 9:10
  [SPEAKER_02]: It would be a great, great, great into his season.
• 9:14
  [SPEAKER_01]: They obviously see something that I don't think that we have seen to have that kind of confidence in him.
• 9:21
  [SPEAKER_01]: They very talented, row eight, with Scott McLaughlin and David Malukas.
• 9:26
  [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, maybe a future Pinsky teammates.
• 9:29
  [SPEAKER_02]: Good luck in here.
• 9:31
  [SPEAKER_02]: There should be a great row.
• 9:32
  [SPEAKER_02]: It just seems like Scott and the other Penske and New Gardens kind of lacks the pace as a whole and the way Indy car is now.
• 9:39
  [SPEAKER_02]: You know, if you don't have a perfect lap, you're not going to advance and Scott just wasn't able to make it but starting fifteenth.
• 9:46
  [SPEAKER_02]: That should be interesting to see him.
• 9:47
  [SPEAKER_02]: He's usually pretty strong on these street courses.
• 9:51
  [SPEAKER_01]: And of course, Malukus was my dark horse coming in to the race and the qualifying results to do not show that he will be a contender.
• 9:59
  [SPEAKER_01]: Again, we'll talk about that in just a minute.
• 10:01
  [SPEAKER_01]: And then the inside of the next row is Felix Rosenquist who you picked as your dark horse coming in.
• 10:08
  [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, say, pretty much the same thing was going to go off and had a good lap, but man, you've just got to be perfect in ending car now.
• 10:14
  [SPEAKER_02]: And especially when you've got a lap time, that's a minute or just under a minute and fifty nine seconds, you've really got to be perfect.
• 10:22
  [SPEAKER_02]: One mistake, one wrong turn, one wrong bump.
• 10:25
  [SPEAKER_02]: I mean, that can bump you from qualifying.
• 10:27
  [SPEAKER_02]: But regardless, it'll be interesting to see him starting so low.
• 10:30
  [SPEAKER_02]: He's obviously been rapid throughout this season, you know, he's fourth in the points or fifth in the points for a reason.
• 10:36
  [SPEAKER_01]: and this teammates up there too, so you know the cars are probably going to be pretty fast.
• 10:41
  [SPEAKER_02]: Exactly.
• 10:42
  [SPEAKER_01]: And Malukus and Rosa Quest were both faster than Joseph New Garden who starts eight teeth.
• 10:47
  [SPEAKER_02]: Or Joseph New Garden.
• 10:48
  [SPEAKER_02]: I'll tell you what, that group too for qualifying.
• 10:51
  [SPEAKER_02]: Absolutely brutal.
• 10:53
  [SPEAKER_02]: Just brutal.
• 10:55
  [SPEAKER_02]: I mean, group two advancing out of his Armstrong V. K. Polo, Ericsson, Hurda and Patto is really, really, really stacked group for Joseph Newgarne and get out of and just wasn't able to get through starting in eighteenth.
• 11:08
  [SPEAKER_02]: It's obviously further back the need one to start, but starting the middle of pack, especially on the street and road course got to be careful for any caution early.
• 11:17
  [SPEAKER_01]: No doubt about that.
• 11:19
  [SPEAKER_01]: Doesn't look like this is a weekend.
• 11:20
  [SPEAKER_01]: We're going to see a Dane and Victory Lane.
• 11:23
  [SPEAKER_01]: Christian Loone Guard is starting.
• 11:25
  [SPEAKER_01]: Nineteenth Robert Schwartzman funny.
• 11:27
  [SPEAKER_01]: If he had a pretty good day, despite starting.
• 11:30
  [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, he did.
• 11:31
  [SPEAKER_02]: I would have thought, Loone Guard would have been a little bit higher.
• 11:35
  [SPEAKER_02]: He's usually now outqualified by no luck again from the Claire and rough weekend.
• 11:40
  [SPEAKER_02]: This is a tractor not great at, but it's just unfortunate.
• 11:43
  [SPEAKER_02]: Loone guards so far down after having a good result last weekend at Iowa.
• 11:49
  [SPEAKER_01]: And on the inside of row eleven is our favorite connered daily of whom goes hollinger.
• 11:55
  [SPEAKER_01]: Next to him is the other day in Christian Rasmussen who had a little bit of bad luck.
• 12:01
  [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, honestly these ECR cars as a whole were pretty pretty miserable this weekend have really lacked pace as a whole and they've honestly been nowhere nowhere to be seen.
• 12:14
  [SPEAKER_01]: Then on road twelve is Santino Farucci and Alexander Rossi rough day for them.
• 12:20
  [SPEAKER_01]: Interesting week for stingray rob who's starting twenty.
• 12:24
  [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, how to trailer fire coming out of Iowa Speedway.
• 12:28
  [SPEAKER_02]: There's some videos of that on X. I'm it's pretty crazy.
• 12:31
  [SPEAKER_02]: You know that a lot of teams kind of stop and help and
• 12:33
  [SPEAKER_02]: As far as I'm aware of this week that actually some of the team's help, who was holding a racing, lug some of their gear up to Toronto.
• 12:40
  [SPEAKER_02]: So great to see that the paddock have their family family relationship with each other.
• 12:46
  [SPEAKER_01]: Starting twenty-sixth is Devlin D. Francesco and it's bad enough when you're starting in the back when the whole team's struggling.
• 12:55
  [SPEAKER_01]: But his team was really good today and he still was really bad.
• 12:59
  [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah.
• 13:00
  [SPEAKER_02]: I think you said a great, just saying his name, just absolutely, just a stinker, just a stinker of a qualifying performance.
• 13:08
  [SPEAKER_02]: And to have almost two cars in the fast six and one car in the fast six, you just can't start that low.
• 13:16
  [SPEAKER_02]: And we've had this devil in conversation for pretty much the whole season.
• 13:20
  [SPEAKER_02]: And I think it's pretty much in stone that there's going to be somebody else in that thirty seat next year.
• 13:26
  [SPEAKER_02]: I feel like there has to be.
• 13:29
  [SPEAKER_01]: And starting twenty-seventh is Jacob Abel who had a crash in qualifying.
• 13:37
  [SPEAKER_02]: Just a rough season for him, obviously a rookie, he's still trying to figure out everything in that del coin seat.
• 13:42
  [SPEAKER_02]: Hopefully he overall this year, hopefully he's just learning everything he can from arenas, such a valuable teammate to have in this sport.
• 13:52
  [SPEAKER_01]: Looks to me, Elijah, like three serious contenders tomorrow, you'd probably put three guys in a class together.
• 13:59
  [SPEAKER_01]: heard a pillow and Kirkwood, who's your pick and outside of those three who are who do you think might be there?
• 14:08
  [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, I really I agree with you that it's going to be heard a pillow or Kirkwood, but I really like Cole and her to get his first win in twenty twenty five.
• 14:17
  [SPEAKER_02]: Obviously he was great here last year and he's been really close to victory lane this year.
• 14:22
  [SPEAKER_02]: They've and dreaded he just had some some problems in the pits either stalling
• 14:25
  [SPEAKER_02]: or if it's in a small issue.
• 14:28
  [SPEAKER_02]: So hopefully they're able to rectify that and I think it'd be good for the series to see another winner.
• 14:32
  [SPEAKER_02]: That's not pillow or Kirkwood.
• 14:34
  [SPEAKER_02]: And I think Curtis got the pace for sure.
• 14:37
  [SPEAKER_02]: If I were to pick a dark horse, when you just see Scott Dixon starting in an eleventh place with a chip-kinacity racing car.
• 14:44
  [SPEAKER_01]: Okay, besides that Dixon action sale, he's starting in a starting way down there.
• 14:50
  [SPEAKER_01]: We expect he's going to be contending, right?
• 14:53
  [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, that's, honestly, then, um, I like the, uh, how are you start?
• 15:00
  [SPEAKER_02]: And I was just, honestly, then, um, I know, honestly, then I'm going to go for a willpower.
• 15:05
  [SPEAKER_02]: I kind of like a shot to win.
• 15:06
  [SPEAKER_02]: Starting up in fourth, the super racy on street courses, and it'd be a good story for for Penske to get their first win on a street course and I would love to see willpower in victory lane.
• 15:17
  [SPEAKER_02]: I don't think anybody wouldn't
• 15:19
  [SPEAKER_01]: I think you'd probably be pretty dumb to pick Graham Ray Hall to win the race, but I would really like to see that.
• 15:25
  [SPEAKER_02]: Gosh, that would be awesome.
• 15:26
  [SPEAKER_02]: That would be such a great story.
• 15:28
  [SPEAKER_01]: It would.
• 15:30
  [SPEAKER_01]: Elijah, I think this is gonna be a really good race, particularly for a street race.
• 15:36
  [SPEAKER_01]: I really think it's gonna be a strategy race.
• 15:39
  [SPEAKER_01]: On speed though, gonna be watching those three in particular, Colton heard Alex below Kyle Kirkwood.
• 15:46
  [SPEAKER_01]: They look like it's gonna be a three-horse race.
• 15:50
  [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, it does.
• 15:50
  [SPEAKER_02]: And, you know, five of the last winners have started on that front row.
• 15:53
  [SPEAKER_02]: And I look at that as a positive thing.
• 15:56
  [SPEAKER_02]: I would want nothing more than a tour on my TV and see Alex blowing cool and her to absolutely battling in Toronto.
• 16:02
  [SPEAKER_02]: Storylines are there and let's just hope any car can provide us with another great race of the twenty twenty five.
• 16:11
  [SPEAKER_01]: Thank you so much to Elijah for joining us once again to talk in the car.
• 16:16
  [SPEAKER_01]: Just a reminder, we talk
• 16:18
  [SPEAKER_01]: Indie car wants a week on the Indie car report and then on race weekends.
• 16:23
  [SPEAKER_01]: We preview the race after qualifying.
• 16:25
  [SPEAKER_01]: Then after the race, we recap it with Elijah and oftentimes some other guests.
• 16:32
  [SPEAKER_01]: We of course will be doing that on Sunday right after the race in Toronto.
• 16:39
  [SPEAKER_01]: Thanks so much for listening.
• 16:40
  [SPEAKER_01]: Please do us a favor and share this podcast with you.
• 16:43
  [SPEAKER_01]: The Indie car fans in your life.
• 16:46
  [SPEAKER_01]: That would help us out of time.
• 16:55
  [SPEAKER_01]: Central Indian Sports Report is a proctor of ITG media and I love Susie.