Team 7-Eleven driver Tony Kanaan outsmarted his competitors by conserving as much fuel as possible while still running at the front and claimed his eighth career IndyCar Series victory at Saturday’s running of the Indy Japan 300. The win moved Kanaan into second place in the IndyCar Series driver championship, three points out of the lead.
Starting third, Kanaan took a cautious approach to the race while always running in the top five. While conserving fuel, Kanaan was consistently the last driver to make pit stops during green-flag racing. The strategy ultimately paid off for Kanaan as he made his final pit stop on lap 191 of 200. Only taking on a few gallons of fuel, he was able to make it back out of the pits before second-place driver Dan Wheldon, who pitted only a few laps prior to Kanaan, could get in front of the Team 7-Eleven car. Those extra few laps gained Kanaan seconds in the pits by needing to take less fuel than Wheldon.
The win moves Kanaan into a tie for the fifth-most victories in IndyCar Series history.
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