Mike Conway. Has there ever been.....

[dot350]

Oh you mean the guy who led Indy and had a podium in Milwaukee? I think he's won an oval also...

Yeah, the same guy that has thrown away multiple championships because of his troubles with ovals.

Sebastien Bourdais has more oval wins in Champ Car than Power does in current IndyCar, and Champ Car didn't even have half of the ovals current IndyCar does.

[castronevesfan3]

Yeah, the same guy that has thrown away multiple championships because of his troubles with ovals.

This.. And that same guy complained about how easy it was to drive on an oval with the old car because it was "just" racing flatout on SuperSpeedways... How many oval races he has won with that car? One, just one and that wasn't even for full points.. Don't tell me he found it easy, otherwise he would have had much more oval wins and even with the new car, wouldn't have threw away his championship chances every time on an oval...

[ICS001]

I just crunched some numbers for the RC/SC races. Counting all races, even those he hasn't competed at, he's ranked 13th in twistie points with 149 (ahead of names like Rahal-14th, Newgarden-15th, Kanaan-17th, and Power-19th).

TK and Power are back there because of DNFs (they haven't lacked speed on the road\street courses). Consistency is very important in the championship.

If we count only races at which he competed, he moves to 3rd, but is still quite a ways behind Dixon (188 pts) by 39 and Franchitti (163). Could Conway challenge for the Mario Andretti trophy? Maybe, but he'd have to go through Ganassi to do it.

No top team is going to give him a ride while he refuses to race on ovals, unfortunately.

[castronevesfan3]

No top team is going to give him a ride while he refuses to race on ovals, unfortunately.

That's sad... I would say, put Allmendinger in the #2 Penske on ovals and let Conway drive it on the RC/SC's..

[cheeseczar]

Leading Indy does not mean nothing.

It did for that Patrick broad.

[mstove]

It did for that Patrick broad.

[ICS001]

That's sad... I would say, put Allmendinger in the #2 Penske on ovals and let Conway drive it on the RC/SC's..

Allmendinger seems more interested in Nascar at this stage, after winning the Nationwide race at Road America.

[Hitokiri]

Allmendinger seems more interested in Nascar at this stage, after winning the Nationwide race at Road America.

Dinger has said multiple times that he'll accept anything that Roger gives him since he's pretty much in debt to Roger for believing in him resurrecting his racing career. I see Dinger as Roger's "do whatever" driver and at this point I don't even think Roger has any idea what he wants to do with Dinger. I think it'll ultimately come down to sponsorship.

[editor]

Has there ever been a really, truly, successful RC/SC only driver?

There have been many. Dan Gurney is one if his Indianapolis 500 forays are viewed in context. How about Rocky Moran's short first CART career or Alan Jones' abbreviated stay?

Success can be measured in many ways. Could the efforts of Tom Klausler, Michael Roe or Chip Robinson be faulted considering the car each had to drive? Do Swede Savage's early days in USAC fit the criteria?

That's sad... I would say, put Allmendinger in the #2 Penske on ovals and let Conway drive it on the RC/SC's..

A.J. Allmendinger finished on the podium 14 times in 40 CCWS starts. Thirteen of those were earned following road and street course races. He won five events (Portland, Cleveland, Toronto, Denver and Elkhart).

[ICS001]

Dinger has said multiple times that he'll accept anything that Roger gives him since he's pretty much in debt to Roger for believing in him resurrecting his racing career. I see Dinger as Roger's "do whatever" driver and at this point I don't even think Roger has any idea what he wants to do with Dinger. I think it'll ultimately come down to sponsorship.

Sponsorship is easier to get for Nascar races. I guess it depends on what happens with Logano and Hornish this year.

[Racing Steward]

Oh you mean the guy who led Indy and had a podium in Milwaukee? I think he's won an oval also...

Has Penske ever had a driver NOT lead at Indy for him? Lots of guys have led at Indy. And that Texas "win" has an asterisk next to it, even he would admit that. Random draw, he drew the front while Franchitti & Dixon drew the back, no cautions. The win was on a silver platter for him, had to pass a rookie (Cunningham) and TK in a clearly slower KV machine. Even he would tell you he's still searching for his first legitimate oval win. His poor runs on ovals far outweigh his good runs. But he has looked alot better on ovals this year.

[Racing Steward]

you know, i still think that Power can contend for an oval win moreso than conway could, but man i really thought after Power's TX win, it would open a huge door for him.

I don't think it's a courage element nor do i think its a determination element.....i only think its a matter of time....but that is what i thought about a year ago. It's a confidence element that seems to be COMPLETELY SEPARATE from courage.

if Will can't take down at least 1 more oval win by the end of next year - 2014 - (realistically speaking....he only has 1 more shot this year (2013) so i think because he DOES have 1 oval win there is a little more leeway)..... then maybe some serious talk should happen

He seems to be as good as but no BETTER than other RC/SC "specialists" on the flat oval tracks (see: Wilson) ....and Wilson is gaining......and in an "inferior" Coyne machine no less

I dunno.

I am gaining respect for guys like Pagenaud, Bourdais, and Wilson......guys who seem to be showing more with having less......maybe Will'll snap out of the funk. We shall see.

Look, Will is clearly a much better road-street racer than he is an oval racer. I dont think anyone could or would argue that. He's shown improvement over time and has looked pretty good on ovals this year. (He's a much better oval driver than Conway was). Yes Justin Wilson has looked very good at times on ovals in an inferior Coyne machine which to me shows he can oval race and potentially win multiple in a top tier ride which Coyne is definitely not. The thing that really hurts Will's case is you cant blame the car, he drives for the most successful team, a team that produces race winning cars and competes for the championship every single year. Its not a car issue like other drivers have to deal with. It just takes time and some guys are quick learners like Scott Dixon was on ovals, others it obviously takes longer to adjust to, like with Will.

Although I will play a little devil's advocate here, even though Will has looked much better on ovals this year, how much of that is credited to the Chevys clearly being quicker than the Hondas? Fellow Chevys RHR & Marco and Helio have consistently run better than Will on them this year and you have to think Dixon & Franchitti would as well if they had equal HP.

[editor]

Has Penske ever had a driver NOT lead at Indy for him?

On the off chance that is not meant to be a rhetorical question, the answer is yes.

Drivers who failed to lead a lap at Indy during their Penske careers include Paul Tracy, David Hobbs, Kevin Cogan, Bobby Allison and Mike Hiss. Danny Ongais is not included since he never competed in the race for Penske.

Drivers who failed to lead a lap for Penske by year:

1969: Mark Donohue.

1973: Gary Bettenhausen, Donohue.

1974: Bettenhausen.

1975: Tom Sneva.

1976: Mario Andretti.

1977: Andretti.

1978: Rick Mears, Andretti.

1984: Al Unser.

1985: Mears, Unser.

1986: Danny Sullivan, Unser.

1987: Mears.

1989: Mears, Unser, Sullivan.

1990: Mears, Sullivan.

1992: Emerson Fittipaldi, Mears.

1995: DNQ.

2004: Helio Castroneves.

2005: Castroneves.

2008: Ryan Briscoe, Castroneves.

2009. Will Power.

2010-11: Power, Briscoe, Castroneves.

2012: Power, Castroneves.

[flatlander_48]

Allmendinger seems more interested in Nascar at this stage, after winning the Nationwide race at Road America.

The sad truth is that there are more possibilities on the NASCAR side. There are more shots at a decent ride out of 43 than 24-25 plus more races and, I think, larger purses. Hard to argue against that.

[Racing Steward]

On the off chance that is not meant to be a rhetorical question, the answer is yes.

Drivers who failed to lead a lap at Indy during their Penske careers include Paul Tracy, David Hobbs, Kevin Cogan, Bobby Allison and Mike Hiss. Danny Ongais is not included since he never competed in the race for Penske.

Drivers who failed to lead a lap for Penske by year:

1969: Mark Donohue.

1973: Gary Bettenhausen, Donohue.

1974: Bettenhausen.

1975: Tom Sneva.

1976: Mario Andretti.

1977: Andretti.

1978: Rick Mears, Andretti.

1984: Al Unser.

1985: Mears, Unser.

1986: Danny Sullivan, Unser.

1987: Mears.

1989: Mears, Unser, Sullivan.

1990: Mears, Sullivan.

1992: Emerson Fittipaldi, Mears.

1995: DNQ.

2004: Helio Castroneves.

2005: Castroneves.

2008: Ryan Briscoe, Castroneves.

2009. Will Power.

2010-11: Power, Briscoe, Castroneves.

2012: Power, Castroneves.

I meant drivers who have led Indy during their careers, not each year, which apparently there have been some who havent. 4 or 5 out of how many? Very small percentage.