Andretti Autosport drivers fought their way through a tough field Sunday at the City Centre Airport circuit in Edmonton to collect three top-ten finishes in the 10th round of the IZOD IndyCar Series.
Ryan Hunter-Reay finished seventh in the 80-lap Edmonton Indy in the new 2.25-mile circuit followed by his Andretti Autosport teammates Mike Conway and Danica Patrick, eighth and ninth respectively. Marco Andretti drove the No. 26 Team Dr Pepper machine to 15th at the checkered flag. Andretti remains seventh in the current point standings, just 12 markers out of fifth place.
Starting seventh, Hunter-Reay battled in the top three in the middle of the race in his No. 28 Team DHL/Circle K/Sun Drop Citrus Soda Honda/Dallara/Firestone entry before making contact in turn five with second place Takuma Sato. The Florida driver was attempting to take the second position on lap 35. The IZOD IndyCar Series officials determined Ryan forced the contact and he received a “drive-through-the-pits” penalty. Hunter-Reay, a podium finisher at Toronto two weeks ago, then charged from 13th to seventh at the new 13-turn track.
Conway, at the controls of the No. 27 Team @FollowAndretti car, came from his 20th starting position to take eight at the finish, while Patrick drove the No. 7 Team GoDaddy machine, from 22nd to ninth. Patrick’s 13 passes tied with J.R. Hildebrand for the most of any driver in Sunday’s Edmonton Indy. Patrick is currently 11th in the point standings.
MARCO ANDRETTI, #26 TEAM DR PEPPER CAR
Recorded a 14th place finish
“It just wasn’t our day. We had some problems at the beginning that affected the Dr Pepper car - we ended up stopped on the track for a bit and had some problems with the engine cutting out on the front straight. After that cleared we just didn’t have the speed we needed and our strategy ended up on the wrong side of a couple yellows. Disappointing but we’ll march forward.”
MIKE CONWAY, #27 TEAM @FOLLOWANDRETTI CAR
Ended the race in eighth place
“We had a good start at the beginning, but lost everything in turn five. After that, it was just picking off people, passing where I could. I came in a bit earlier, which worked out well with red tires as I seemed to be passing people quickly. On the restart, I just didn’t see the green flag; it’s just something I’ve got to learn when up front. In turn five again, I got caught up on the outside and lost some positions then lost a lot of time with the drive-through penalty. From there I just treated it like qualifying, lap after lap. Overall, not a bad finish considering where we were. I’m looking forward to Mid-Ohio.”
RYAN HUNTER-REAY, #28 TEAM DHL/CIRCLE K/ SUN DROP CITRUS SODA CAR
Finished the race in seventh place
“We had a really good car today. I fought through it; we had some great restarts and good passes. With Sato, I broke early and went for it. It was totally my fault, and I apologized to Sato. I apologize to the team too; we had a podium car for sure. But that’s me going for it. I’d rather go for it in a race than sit in a line. We’ll take this top-10 and see what we can do next time.”
DANICA PATRICK, #7 TEAM GoDaddy.com CAR
Secured a ninth place finish
“We had a really solid race. We had some strong restarts and my crew was fantastic in the pits. Near the end of the race, I just didn’t have the speed to hold my position. At the end of the day, it was a good top-10 finish for the GoDaddy.com car, which is great momentum heading into Mid-Ohio.”
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