Stats on a Successful Year
The average margin of victory over the 12 race 2009 season was 4.21 seconds. Five races had a margin of victory under a second, with eventual champion Chris Miller edging Matthew Inge by .126 seconds at VIR for the closest finish of the year. Of those five races, four involved Chris Miller and Matthew Inge splitting the top two spots, and Inge was involved in all five, missing out on a win at Watkins Glen by a few tenths to surprise winner Phil Lombardi.
The biggest margin of victory on the year was Benjamin Searcy’s impressive rain drive in the season opener at VIR, winning by some 14 seconds. Tim Minor won by just under 11 seconds at Summit Point months later, those two margins affecting the average. Without those two victories, the average victory margin is an even slimmer 2.48 seconds.
The most exciting weekend of the year, according to the margin of victory statistics, was Mosport. In the first race of the weekend, Miller edged Inge by six tenths. And a day later, Inge got the better of Miller, by six tenths.
Car Counts
The average car count over the twelve race season was 25.92, a number calculated by the number of cars taking the green flag for each race. That number was as high as 32 at Watkins Glen and as low as 22 at Mosport.
As for the competition, F2000 proved yet again its position in the open-wheel market place. Star Mazda’s average car count, using a more liberal method, was 23.92. The Atlantic Championship checked in with an average car count of 12.33. The Indy Lights championship averaged 19.78 cars on the 2009 season.
Qualifying Gaps
The average pole time was .242 seconds faster than second place in the twelve qualifying sessions on the year. The closest differential coming at Summit Point with Chris Miller edging Remy Audette by four thousandths of a second for pole.
The difference for race one at Lime Rock was a slim eight thousandths of a second with Searcy taking the pole over Miller. Four races had a pole time that was less than a tenth of a second away from the second fastest qualifier.
Even More Numbers
Weekend attendance at Watkins Glen was estimated to be around 60,000, ISC does not release official attendance numbers. Many are still wondering if the radar gun rumors comparing Indy Cars and the F2000 from the bus stop are true…