The Start Of The Race At St.Pete

[aaron5572]

Agreed and that's why Scott Dixon made so many passes on starts and why he kept smoking Hinchcliffe. It's not so much that Hinch was slow on the starts but that Scott Dixon was jumping the starts as he always has. Dario and TK (and to a lesser extent Helio who is more known for blocking) are also known for constantly jumping the start.

The biggest problem with the starts/re-starts in this series are a direct result of the "veterans" and champions that have all gotten into the habit of playing games with brake-checking, jumping the start, weaving and running people off the racing line. They do this because nobody ever laid down the law and told them they couldn't..................and so far it doesn't appear that Barfield is going to either because I thought the start was horrible and one of the re-starts was too. It sucks for the guys that follow the rules like Hinch and Hildebrand that they are always losing positions on re-starts because they are honest and actually follow the rules.

When newer/younger drivers like Hinchcliffe, Hildebrand, and Pagenaud come into the series they get smoked and taken advantage of on the starts/re-starts because they actually follow the rules and don't know any better. Some would say they are just slow but I don't call actually following the rules being slow.......somebody just needs to make guys like Dixon actually abide by the rules and quit making the starts a strung out joke. The complete mess that is the middle and end of the field on the start is a direct result of all the nonsense and games being played at the front........and sometimes some of the backmarkers seem to nearly fall asleep at the wheel and be caught off guard that the green flag is being waved.

I thought that Dixon blowing by Tagliani in Turn 4 at the Indy start last year was ridiculous and I though no way would they give that crap the green flag....but they did.....

[pitwall3]

I have long said that NONE of our manufactured race tracks have enough room for rolling starts. Go to standing starts. Completely unfair to have Power and the top 6 getting to full speed while others are still in the hairpin going 35

I agree and the sooner the better.

[Ernest Miller]

This is what Beaux Barfield said a week ago.

“Forming a good start is up to me, and what happens with the group when the green flag is waved, Turn 1, Turn 3, that’s up to the drivers. I empower them as such, respect them as such and give them that responsibility. If it’s not achieved the way I expect it to and how the fans expect it to, then appropriate action will be taken.”

Did anyone see any appropriate action taken? Look, it was the first race and Barfield has a thankless job. But when you're on record about how things are gonna change and nothing happens, its makes me think it was nothing but talk. Ernest

[Nigel Red5]

Standing starts fix this.

so what about the re-starts?

Of all the street courses, St Pete should be easy to form up the field. It's a friggin airport runway. Move the s/f line closer to turn 1 if need be, or widen the part they paved to form the last turn so the field can get lined up along the last straight and maintain it through the turn. Even if they go single file on restarts, hold the yellow until the leader actually reaches the s/f line.

Long beach is clearly the worst and they simply need to delay the greens.