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I only started watching this series real closely since practice at Indy last year. It surprised me that there was any differential in speed at all, since the cars are identical and the setup characteristics should be well established. For every team that hasn't been running this chassis for seven years, there are guys working for the newer teams that have.
The big boys have the small speed secrets, but that doesn't explain the inconsistant results that plague many of the other teams.
Today is a good example. Last year, N/H/L puts their car on the pole with Rahal. Today, Mutoh runs strong with the same setup. So those guys have this track figured out, and Graham ran well at Chicagoland too.
Which means that if they figure out the best setup for Indy or Texas, they won't be any less competitive than they were today. If you're a squirrel, maybe you find an acorn once in a while.
Penske and Ganasi bring a bag full of them to every race. Their drivers and engineers are better at tuning the cars.
If Danica's right rear was showing increased wear or temp in all the practice laps they got, somebody missed the sign. I'd have to guess that was a loose racecar, and you could hear her lift BIG time in the turns.
How all of that is Danica's fault is beyond me. She's quite capable of using the weight jacker and rear swaybar to help herself. She didn't get whatever else she needed, whether it was correct pressures, spring rate, damper settings, or alignment angles.
Take away her broom and give her a tool box, and we'll know who to blame.
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