2007 Vegas Grand Prix

The 2007 Vegas Grand Prix was the first round of the 2007 Champ Car World Series Season, held on April 8 on the streets of Las Vegas, Nevada.

Qualifying results

Pos Nat Name Team Qual 1 Qual 2 Best 1 Will Power Team Australia 1:21.007 1:17.629 1:17.629 2 Paul Tracy Forsythe Racing 1:19.784 1:19.625 1:19.625* 3 Robert Doornbos Minardi Team USA 1:20.991 1:18.515 1:18.515 4 Alex Tagliani RSPORTS 1:20.437 1:18.850 1:18.850 5 Simon Pagenaud Team Australia 1:19.998 1:18.961 1:18.961 6 Bruno Junqueira Dale Coyne Racing - 1:19.102 1:19.102 7 Mario Domínguez Forsythe Racing 1:22.384 1:19.156 1:19.156 8 Justin Wilson RSPORTS 1:20.310 1:19.269 1:19.269 9 Neel Jani PKV Racing 1:21.618 1:19.360 1:19.360 10 Graham Rahal N/H/L Racing 1:23.307 1:19.710 1:19.710 11 Tristan Gommendy PKV Racing 1:21.565 1:19.784 1:19.784 12 Dan Clarke Minardi Team USA 1:22.123 1:19.814 1:19.814 13 Katherine Legge Dale Coyne Racing 1:22.420 1:20.104 1:20.104 14 Matt Halliday Conquest Racing 13:20.444 1:20.122 1:20.122 15 Ryan Dalziel Pacific Coast Motorsports 1:22.202 1:20.128 1:20.128 16 Sébastien Bourdais N/H/L Racing 1:20.197 - 1:20.197 17 Alex Figge Pacific Coast Motorsports 1:22.788 1:20.313 1:20.313

Tracy awarded 2nd on the starting grid for gaining provisional pole position.

Grid

RowInsideOutside15 Will Power3 Paul Tracy214 Robert Doornbos8 Alex Tagliani315 Simon Pagenaud19 Bruno Junqueira47 Mario Domínguez9 Justin Wilson521 Neel Jani2 Graham Rahal622 Tristan Gommendy4 Dan Clarke711 Katherine Legge42 Matt Halliday828 Ryan Dalziel1 Sébastien Bourdais929 Alex Figge

Race The race was a fresh start for the Champ Car World Series. With a new car (Panoz DP01), new rules, including timed races and staggered starts, new teams like Pacific Coast Motorsports, a different season opener on a new track, and an eventual return to ABC/ESPN later in the year, all were the big stories of the day. The race would be one of survival of the fittest as many drivers were taken out by either crashes or mechanical failures. Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing would not have a good day as 3-time champion Sébastien Bourdais was hampered by numerous tire problems and rookie Graham Rahal crashed on the frontstretch on the first lap. Will Power had the dominant car all day long, only being challenged consistently by Paul Tracy, who many saw as the man to unseat Bourdais as the face of Champ Car. In the end, the race would all come down to fuel mileage. Tracy's car struggled with taking a full load of fuel preventing him from snapping his winless streak. Will Power outlasted the field to take his first career victory, which was also the first Champ Car victory by an Australian, in a dominant fashion.

Pos No Driver Team Laps Time/Retired Grid Points 1 5 Will Power Team Australia 68 1:45:13.637 1 34 2 14 Robert Doornbos Minardi Team USA 68 +16.789 3 27 3 3 Paul Tracy Forsythe Racing 68 +27.356 2 27 4 8 Alex Tagliani RSPORTS 68 +48.981 4 24 5 22 Tristan Gommendy PKV Racing 68 +1:10.396 11 21 6 11 Katherine Legge Dale Coyne Racing 68 +1:21.261 13 20 7 19 Bruno Junqueira Dale Coyne Racing 66 + 1 Lap 6 18 8 29 Alex Figge Pacific Coast Motorsports 63 + 5 Laps 17 15 9 7 Mario Domínguez Forsythe Racing 57 + 11 Laps 7 13 10 21 Neel Jani PKV Racing 56 Mechanical 9 11 11 28 Ryan Dalziel Pacific Coast Motorsports 52 + 16 Laps 15 10 12 15 Simon Pagenaud Team Australia 47 Engine 5 9 13 1 Sébastien Bourdais N/H/L Racing 30 Accident 16 8 14 9 Justin Wilson RSPORTS 20 Input shaft 8 7 15 4 Dan Clarke Minardi Team USA 13 Accident 12 6 16 42 Matt Halliday Conquest Racing 3 Accident 14 5 17 2 Graham Rahal N/H/L Racing 1 Accident 10 4

Caution flags

Laps Cause1 Yellow Start2-5 Rahal/Halliday crash6-7 Figge stalled14-17 Clarke crash

Notes Laps Leader1 Will Power2-10 Paul Tracy11-27 Will Power28-38 Alex Tagliani39-45 Will Power46-48 Bruno Junqueira49-55 Paul Tracy56-68 Will Power Driver Laps ledWill Power 38Paul Tracy 16Alex Tagliani 11Bruno Junqueira 3

New Race Lap Record: Will Power: 1:19.934 New Race Record: Will Power: 1:45:13.637 (68 Laps) This was not only Will Power's first victory, but also the first victory for an Australian in Champ Car. The win was also the first for Team Australia owner Derrick Walker since 1999.

Attendance Attendance at the inaugural 2007 event was estimated to be 40,000 fans on race day. This surpassed the number of seats available on the course's temporary grandstands facilitating an expansion for the 2008 season.ESPN - Vegas gamble pays off for Champ Car World Series - Open-WheelReviewJournal.com - News - GRAND PRIX'S TWIN SPIN

Future of the race This was the third race for Champ Car in Las Vegas, but the only one held on a downtown street course. Two oval Grands Prix had taken place at Las Vegas Motor Speedway: the 2004 Bridgestone 400 and the 2005 Hurricane Relief 400. The planned 2008 race was removed from the calendar due to Champ Car's merge with the Indy Racing League (IRL).

IndyCar returned to Las Vegas in 2011, however the return was at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, rather than to a downtown street course.

References

External links Full Weekend Times & Results Race Box Score