A Great Finish

The Indianapolis 500 met my expectations.  The finish exceeded them.

One great decision by IndyCar to throw the Red Flag set up the final run.  Apparently, IndyCar learned it's lesson a year ago.  It cost Ryan Hunter-Reay a shot at the first Indy 500 win then.  He didn't miss it today.

Helio Castroneves made one gutsy pass.  Ryan Hunter-Reay made two of them.  Someone wanted his first Indy 500 more than someone else wanted his fourth.  Otherwise, Helio would have made another pass.  He had the car to do it.  Ryan wasn't afraid to cut a little grass to get it done.  Helio wouldn't.

While the race didn't have the lead changes of last year's victory by Tony Kanaan, but it had a large amount of close racing.  It was caution free for a long run at the start.  It was fun to watch.

By the way, Marco Andretti, listen to your grandpa.  Mario told him to get to the front as soon as possible after the red flag situation.  Third place was not the place to be.  Don't care if it was 45 years ago: in this case, Gramps knew best.

Enjoyed the runs by Sage Karam and Kurt Busch.  Kurt ran a very solid race, made good stops and looked like the professional he is.  I wonder if this will give him some positive publicity: he still gets booed a lot at NASCAR races for the way he behaved while winning a Winston Cup a few years back.  I think he needs a change of scenery.  The discipline required to take care of your equipment might unlock Kurt's potential, still untapped in NASCAR.

Sage looked like a veteran, not a 19 year old missing his Senior Prom.  He made solid passes and looked very comfortable on racing's biggest stage.  I loved the Tweet using the same truck he went to his Kart races in to take him to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.  It's down to earth, and made him look wiser than his 19 years.  I like his style.  Barring injury, he will be a great addition to the IndyCar family.

So...am I off base?