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The IndyCar Report with Elijah Poe: Indy Road Course Preview (2.255.2) · The Central Indiana Sports Report

• 0:10
  [SPEAKER_01]: Welcome Indie Car fans to the Central Indiana Sports Report for this week's Indie Car Report with Elijah Poe.
• 0:17
  [SPEAKER_01]: I'm Greg Mendel, Elijah usually does the intros, but I wanted to do it today for a couple of reasons.
• 0:22
  [SPEAKER_01]: One to say, the next few weeks we probably will not have a regular early scheduled Indie Car Report, because we're going to have multiple each week talking about practice and qualifying.
• 0:32
  [SPEAKER_01]: Then we're going to preview the race, we're going to react to the race, we're going to do all of it.
• 0:37
  [SPEAKER_01]: So don't count on it being Thursday morning next week.
• 0:41
  [SPEAKER_01]: It'll be most every day, probably.
• 0:43
  [SPEAKER_01]: And Elijah made some of the days because he is in the middle of a busy time in life.
• 0:48
  [SPEAKER_01]: Elijah, congratulations.
• 0:50
  [SPEAKER_01]: A graduate from Ball State University now and starting a new job, congratulations.
• 0:55
  [SPEAKER_01]: We're proud of it.
• 0:57
  [SPEAKER_00]: Thank you, Greg.
• 0:57
  [SPEAKER_00]: I really appreciate it.
• 0:58
  [SPEAKER_00]: I can't wait to get started out in a Clint Iowa here in a couple weeks covering some high school and some,
• 1:04
  [SPEAKER_00]: Prospect League Baseball, so I'm really looking forward to it, but always looking forward to watching any car, that's for damn sure.
• 1:11
  [SPEAKER_00]: I'll everybody where you're going to be and how they can follow you going forward.
• 1:15
  [SPEAKER_00]: I'm going to be in Clinton, Iowa with the Clinton Herald, you can follow me on the Clinton Herald Facebook page, a lot of their sports articles tend to be free, which is great for viewers.
• 1:25
  [SPEAKER_00]: And you can also find me best at Elijah Poe 4 on X, the Everything app, where I will definitely be live tweeting, sending out articles and other stuff like that.
• 1:35
  [SPEAKER_00]: So it's really exciting to get started here in a couple weeks, that's for sure.
• 1:38
  [SPEAKER_01]: Very cool and you can continue to hear Elijah on the Indie Car Report, although, again, maybe here and there, right, as during the month of May, Elijah.
• 1:47
  [SPEAKER_00]: I'm actually moving in here this week, and it's going to be a long week of low-nepotruck unloading the truck and driving five hours, so it should be an interesting move to say the least, but once I get settled here, it should be good for the 500, that's for sure.
• 2:05
  [SPEAKER_01]: And of course, learning a new town, learning a new job.
• 2:08
  [SPEAKER_01]: You're going to be very busy, but Dave Chandley will be here with Elijah when Elijah's here, and he will fill in when Elijah's not Michelle Garmin as well.
• 2:18
  [SPEAKER_01]: So we'll have you cover to Elijah, but we hope you can be here as often as possible.
• 2:23
  [SPEAKER_01]: Let's talk about Indy.
• 2:25
  [SPEAKER_01]: We're finally here.
• 2:26
  [SPEAKER_00]: It's May.
• 2:27
  [SPEAKER_00]: We've got cars on track on the legendary Indianapolis Motor Speedway, but they are unfortunately running the wrong way this week.
• 2:35
  [SPEAKER_00]: But a Sancio Grand Prix has usually been a pretty classic race in the any car staple, and it's been dominated by Alex Plo who was won the last three races at Indy.
• 2:48
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, I rewatch last year's today.
• 2:50
  [SPEAKER_01]: And primary, how led the first 46 laps, essentially.
• 2:53
  [SPEAKER_01]: And Alex blow just hunting him down and picked him off.
• 2:57
  [SPEAKER_01]: But it is Alex blows race to win.
• 2:59
  [SPEAKER_01]: I assume going into this weekend, but we'll talk about the indie gromper here in a minute.
• 3:06
  [SPEAKER_01]: But because we probably won't talk about it throughout the month of May, I want to talk about the championship race, Elijah, and even though.
• 3:15
  [SPEAKER_01]: Alex blows dominated the race wins.
• 3:18
  [SPEAKER_01]: He isn't running away with the championship like he was last year.
• 3:23
  [SPEAKER_00]: No, he's not.
• 3:23
  [SPEAKER_00]: Only 17 points ahead of Kyle Kirkwood, who's had a fantastic start to the season.
• 3:28
  [SPEAKER_00]: And it's hilarious.
• 3:29
  [SPEAKER_00]: Plo is let 186 laps and Kirkwood has only led 63.
• 3:34
  [SPEAKER_00]: So up just around a third of the laps and Plo still only has a 17 point lead.
• 3:40
  [SPEAKER_00]: And I think that's a testament to how consistent Kirkwood has been this year.
• 3:44
  [SPEAKER_00]: takes another big jump to get down to David Malukus and really a group of four or five drivers who were kind of within the 50 to 60 to 75 range.
• 3:54
  [SPEAKER_00]: With New Garden kind of being the last one I would consider kind of in this hunt with the 75 points back in six place.
• 4:01
  [SPEAKER_00]: But then again, we go to 10th and Graham Ray Hall's only 99 points back.
• 4:05
  [SPEAKER_00]: It'd be a really big swing for him to get maybe in the top three, but you know, top five's not out of the question only 20 points back at the top five.
• 4:16
  [SPEAKER_01]: And that, with all that said, Elijah, Alex blows championship to lose, right?
• 4:21
  [SPEAKER_00]: Absolutely.
• 4:23
  [SPEAKER_00]: It's a little bit closer than it has been in years past, but regardless, he's just so good.
• 4:28
  [SPEAKER_00]: We watch it weekend and week out.
• 4:30
  [SPEAKER_00]: The mistakes he makes are minimal.
• 4:32
  [SPEAKER_00]: If he even makes a mistake, it's just so impressive to see what he's doing.
• 4:36
  [SPEAKER_00]: And now that he's kind of he's always been really good on the oval at the 500.
• 4:40
  [SPEAKER_00]: And now that he's one,
• 4:41
  [SPEAKER_00]: I think that just makes him an even scarier competitor to this field, even though it is such a great field, knowing that he's done it before, I can imagine his conference is going to be sky high this whole month, especially winning all three of the Sonsio Grand Prix back to back to back the last three years.
• 4:58
  [SPEAKER_01]: Elijah Alex blows one eleven of the last 23 races.
• 5:01
  [SPEAKER_01]: So if he wins the Grand Prix this week at IMS, he will have won half of the last 24 races.
• 5:09
  [SPEAKER_00]: It's just incredible.
• 5:10
  [SPEAKER_00]: That's a really testament to Alex Polo, but it's also a testament to just how good that tank room has been.
• 5:15
  [SPEAKER_00]: You can't win half the races if you have a bad pit stop or if you stall or anything that can happen strategy wise and it just doesn't happen with them.
• 5:25
  [SPEAKER_00]: I wouldn't be surprised if Polo wins on Saturday and that's a reminder to race fans.
• 5:29
  [SPEAKER_00]: This race is going to be on Saturday this weekend.
• 5:32
  [SPEAKER_00]: I wouldn't be so shocked at all to see him in victory lane once again, which my gosh four times in a row with the same road course, that'd be a true testament just how great he is.
• 5:40
  [SPEAKER_01]: And as we turn our attention to the road course at Indy, we look at the odds to win the.
• 5:48
  [SPEAKER_01]: Grand Prix on Saturday, heading into the weekend before any practice before any qualifying, go to fan dual and Alex blows a one to two favorite to win this race, which I think is insane.
• 6:01
  [SPEAKER_01]: I know he's probably the favorite to win it, but he's not going to be that big of a favorite going into this weekend.
• 6:09
  [SPEAKER_00]: I do think he has that advantage over the field.
• 6:12
  [SPEAKER_00]: He's just been so consistent around here and
• 6:14
  [SPEAKER_00]: It's really been qualifying, he really has never missed a beat in qualifying around here, even though he got beaten out by a couple of the RLO cars last year.
• 6:22
  [SPEAKER_00]: The pace and his tire saving ability, we've seen it time and time again where there's no question who can do it best and it's him.
• 6:31
  [SPEAKER_00]: That being said though, it isn't any car race, you'd ever know, I'm not sure it's supposed to rain in Indianapolis on Saturday, the rain could always play a factor, you really never
• 6:41
  [SPEAKER_00]: even a first a first lap crash, but then again, those odds do seem pretty high, but if there's anybody who had given those odds to, I think, below just because he's been so damn consistent around the road force, but I would also think that Christian Lungar and Graham Rainhol should also be not right up par with below, but
• 6:59
  [SPEAKER_00]: who've shown time and time and again have a really good pace around this road course.
• 7:04
  [SPEAKER_00]: I mean, Graham Ray Hall, I think is finished within the top 10, the past like 12 times they've raised around the indie road course, so he's also going to be a big factor.
• 7:15
  [SPEAKER_01]: If you ask me to make a pick of a driver, I probably take Alex blow, but if you ask me, Alex blow or the entire field,
• 7:23
  [SPEAKER_01]: I wouldn't take Alex blow.
• 7:25
  [SPEAKER_01]: If you told me you do that three times an Alex blow would win twice and you could have the entire field.
• 7:30
  [SPEAKER_01]: I just don't see it.
• 7:32
  [SPEAKER_01]: There are courses where he's that dominant going into the weekend.
• 7:35
  [SPEAKER_01]: I just don't think this is one of those.
• 7:38
  [SPEAKER_01]: I think we're going to make a pick here.
• 7:39
  [SPEAKER_01]: I'm not going to pick him.
• 7:41
  [SPEAKER_00]: I can see that I really can you could argue that maybe Laguna's sake is probably his best track but three times in a row it's hard to beat I'd be interested four times in a row and the same track year after year after year after year it's just really hard to do especially with the field we've got here but
• 7:58
  [SPEAKER_00]: It's up to these other teams.
• 8:00
  [SPEAKER_00]: You kind of take it to Polo.
• 8:01
  [SPEAKER_00]: Are they really going to let him win?
• 8:03
  [SPEAKER_00]: No, this fourth race in a row with the same track.
• 8:05
  [SPEAKER_00]: I'd be shocked because I do think there are a lot of competitive cars, especially this year.
• 8:10
  [SPEAKER_00]: But they just need to bring the pace around and do that for sure.
• 8:15
  [SPEAKER_01]: If he gets the poll on Friday, I'll completely change my tune.
• 8:20
  [SPEAKER_01]: For now, I think Kirkwood is gonna have a strong wing.
• 8:24
  [SPEAKER_01]: I think Andrade is gonna have a strong weekend.
• 8:25
  [SPEAKER_01]: I think Ray Hall's gonna have a strong weekend.
• 8:28
  [SPEAKER_01]: I think it's gonna be a very good weekend for the Pinskies.
• 8:32
  [SPEAKER_00]: They desperately need it.
• 8:33
  [SPEAKER_00]: You look at Joseph Newgar and in six and Scottie Mack and seventh.
• 8:36
  [SPEAKER_00]: Either of those drivers come with a podium, they could easily try to crack that top five and maybe get into that top four only just Newgar sitting only six points behind powder ward and fourth right now.
• 8:48
  [SPEAKER_00]: So that grouping between third and seventh is only
• 8:52
  [SPEAKER_00]: you know, 14, 15 points, so which can easily swing on a matter of a weekend and with three team-pinski cars in that top in that grouping from 3 to 7, I think we can see a lot of shake up, especially if one of them is able to win.
• 9:16
  [SPEAKER_01]: All right, Elijah, let's get to the part of the podcast where we predict what's going to happen this weekend, and your picture when this weekend is.
• 9:25
  [SPEAKER_00]: I'm just a sucker for the storyline.
• 9:27
  [SPEAKER_00]: I got to go grab Ray Hall.
• 9:28
  [SPEAKER_00]: Gosh, I'd love to see him back in victory lane.
• 9:31
  [SPEAKER_00]: And I think he had such a good showing earlier this season, but also just look at him what he's done statistically on the road course at Indian.
• 9:38
  [SPEAKER_00]: He's been really, really consistent.
• 9:41
  [SPEAKER_00]: I'll probably shoot myself from the foot, maybe this would be the one year he's not consistent, but just the stats alone, I'm gonna have to go gram and I think he's going to remember that last year, you know, he led pretty much half the race, I was there, he had a really really good pace the whole time, but just wasn't able to hang on, I was polo being able to undercut him and I think you can hang on this year, I think that RLL teams, just a little bit different than they were last year.
• 10:07
  [SPEAKER_01]: kind of went back and forth here.
• 10:08
  [SPEAKER_01]: I said, if you gave me the entire field, I'd probably pick flow with my mind.
• 10:15
  [SPEAKER_01]: I just, I have a feeling this is not going to be his weekend.
• 10:18
  [SPEAKER_01]: Just, it's a gut feeling.
• 10:20
  [SPEAKER_01]: So, give me Christianalun guard to win.
• 10:21
  [SPEAKER_01]: He's been really good at India as well.
• 10:24
  [SPEAKER_01]: And I think this might be a Chevy weekend.
• 10:29
  [SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, that's a good pick.
• 10:30
  [SPEAKER_00]: A Christian Loongard is, that's really needs a good result here because we know his strong suit is definitely not the Ovalor Indy in getting any points he can and just seem being competitive for the whole month, it may be huge for him.
• 10:46
  [SPEAKER_01]: And besides, Plo and of course Ray Hall who you picked, who else are you expecting to see contending for a win on Saturday?
• 10:54
  [SPEAKER_00]: I don't think this person might contend for a win, but I think he might be in that podium grouping.
• 10:58
  [SPEAKER_00]: David Lucas has been having a really good year, just hasn't had a win yet.
• 11:02
  [SPEAKER_00]: Obviously sitting in third place, I think he's due for a really good month of May.
• 11:06
  [SPEAKER_00]: We know how good he is around the oval.
• 11:08
  [SPEAKER_00]: I think if he can scrap out a podium, maybe even a second, and maybe even a surprise first.
• 11:13
  [SPEAKER_00]: He never really know what the new car would be.
• 11:16
  [SPEAKER_00]: I wouldn't be shocked to see that because I think we're going to see some pretty big things this whole month from David and Lucas.
• 11:23
  [SPEAKER_01]: I can't believe it's taking this long, but my pick is going to be pattoe award.
• 11:26
  [SPEAKER_01]: I went back and forth between Lune Garden award and I think it might be McLaren's weekend.
• 11:34
  [SPEAKER_00]: They desperately need it.
• 11:36
  [SPEAKER_00]: I was thinking about going McLaren as well, but man, they've really lacks some pace around some of these road courses throughout the year.
• 11:43
  [SPEAKER_01]: It's a little different kind of road course.
• 11:45
  [SPEAKER_00]: Little, very different.
• 11:47
  [SPEAKER_00]: Very different than what Indie cars used to.
• 11:51
  [SPEAKER_01]: So I went on to has dominated the last couple of years.
• 11:55
  [SPEAKER_00]: And McLaren needs it, especially if Paddo's going to get content, he needs at least a podium.
• 11:59
  [SPEAKER_00]: And we all know he's a shot to win the 500 here in a few weeks time.
• 12:05
  [SPEAKER_01]: All right, give me a long shot or two Elijah.
• 12:08
  [SPEAKER_00]: Long shot, yeah, I've been kind of tuning his horn all year, but I really love what Felix Rosenquist has done with Marte Shank Racing.
• 12:15
  [SPEAKER_00]: I wouldn't be surprised maybe seeing him in the top five, maybe for podium.
• 12:18
  [SPEAKER_00]: And the same goes for kind of Marcus Ayrichs and who had a really hot start to the year has kind of fell in off these past couple races, but I wouldn't be surprised to see him contending just because I think that.
• 12:27
  [SPEAKER_00]: And Dreddy Carr is always gonna be good at Andy.
• 12:32
  [SPEAKER_01]: We've been talking about how good Ray Hall is around this track.
• 12:35
  [SPEAKER_01]: is it finally makes you markers weekend.
• 12:37
  [SPEAKER_01]: Elijah, that's, that's could be my pick and I'm going to go ahead and add a Louis Foster that I like that.
• 12:44
  [SPEAKER_00]: Louis Foster had a good year there last year and honestly, I hope it is to make sure markers weekend because I just want to see him succeed.
• 12:52
  [SPEAKER_00]: I just want to see him succeed and maybe get some good results under his belt because I think that only he needs it, but I think the sport as a whole needs him to have a good result because we know we know what his name is we we know he's got that shoe marker legacy and it would be awesome for him to have a big weekend super cool.
• 13:13
  [SPEAKER_00]: It's been bad.
• 13:14
  [SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, it's been.
• 13:17
  [SPEAKER_00]: Sitting, you know, two points are above Stingray Rob is nothing to write on about.
• 13:22
  [SPEAKER_00]: No hate against Stingray Rob, but I just been a rough year for both of those drivers.
• 13:27
  [SPEAKER_00]: That's for damn sure.
• 13:32
  [SPEAKER_00]: I think of McLaren racing, I think.
• 13:34
  [SPEAKER_00]: what they're going to start to do is take their Formula 2, Formula 3 drivers, that third seat there in the Nicar team is a perfect training ground for maybe they want to stay in Nicar or maybe McLaren plans to take them to Nicar and then maybe over to Formula 1.
• 13:50
  [SPEAKER_00]: I think it's going to be a great thing for McLaren to kind of bring in this new fresh talent.
• 13:55
  [SPEAKER_00]: Even though we have such a talented grid already, I think whenever you bring somebody in from f3, f2, it raises some some heads and kind of levels up this competition because if you're able to succeed over there, you know, it's not 100% guarantee that you're going to succeed over in any car, but nonetheless, I think it's great.
• 14:16
  [SPEAKER_01]: And it looks like he's probably destined for F1.
• 14:18
  [SPEAKER_01]: I think he's probably destined for greatness and F1, but he is looking and didn't he card as an option?
• 14:24
  [SPEAKER_01]: And I think that's a good thing.
• 14:27
  [SPEAKER_00]: Think it needs to be known that, you know, any card may not come with the illustrious deep, my bags of money that you get in Formula One, but doing a prud yourself as a racer, there's no better series to do it.
• 14:40
  [SPEAKER_01]: I think if you're Formula One right now, what you're looking for is young Italian drivers, right?
• 14:45
  [SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, give me ants and Ellie my good 19 years old dominating formula.
• 14:52
  [SPEAKER_00]: I was playing on Xbox in 19 year old my goodness.
• 14:54
  [SPEAKER_00]: I can't believe he's over there, you know, easily as a contender for the Formula One World Championship.
• 15:01
  [SPEAKER_00]: It's a pre-incredible.
• 15:03
  [SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, just a computer for premonet long ago.
• 15:06
  [SPEAKER_00]: Premon, please come back to Indianapolis.
• 15:08
  [SPEAKER_00]: We miss you.
• 15:11
  [SPEAKER_01]: And in a news item that I found strange, and I'm not sure I completely understand, push the pass is available all the time, so why not just give him extra horsepower.
• 15:22
  [SPEAKER_01]: That makes no sense.
• 15:23
  [SPEAKER_00]: So I think it's weird.
• 15:25
  [SPEAKER_00]: I think maybe teams complain so much, and maybe that, you know, this is the second technical problem in two years.
• 15:32
  [SPEAKER_00]: They're just gonna scrap it all, but,
• 15:35
  [SPEAKER_00]: I don't get it, just because you know everybody's going to use it on a restart.
• 15:39
  [SPEAKER_00]: It's really not going to do anything.
• 15:42
  [SPEAKER_00]: It's probably easier technically for the indie car team and stewards to do that.
• 15:49
  [SPEAKER_00]: But I just, I don't get it.
• 15:51
  [SPEAKER_00]: And Grammaray always said the pretty much the same thing, everybody's going to use it on the restart.
• 15:56
  [SPEAKER_00]: So why even allow it if everybody's going to use it.
• 15:59
  [SPEAKER_01]: Elijah thinks so much and have a great move and a great time here as you transition in life and appreciate you taking the time to do this today and we look forward to hearing from you in the next couple of weeks.
• 16:12
  [SPEAKER_00]: Of course, thank you very much, Greg.
• 16:13
  [SPEAKER_00]: I love the Sancio Grand Prix, but they're running the wrong way and it's only a week's time before they start running the right way at the any Atlas Mars B-way.
• 16:24
  [SPEAKER_01]: Thanks once again to Elijah, congratulations, and good luck to him.
• 16:29
  [SPEAKER_01]: Thank you so much for listening.
• 16:31
  [SPEAKER_01]: Please check out my daily podcast, the Central Indiana Sports 10 Minute Report, every day on the Central Indiana Sports Report.
• 16:40
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• 16:49
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• 17:49
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