It is strange to see a top-level international competition that decides to make time in its calendar to make room for a race without points at stake, as if it were an exhibition.
Impossible to imagine, for example, in
Formula 1
or the
Dakar Rally
.
However,
IndyCar
decided to bring a modification for 2024: include a date at the
Thermal Club
in California, an exclusive private circuit with an impressive purse of 1.7 million dollars in prizes financed by a group of millionaires, for which 27 pilots fought.
And
Agustín Canapino
stood out on the extensive track with laps of almost 5 kilometers and finished in 10th place.
Canapino showed a high level of driving throughout the weekend
: he knew how to get the most out of the car in order to keep the tires alive and be able, without risking too much, to stay among the first.
In addition, his top speed on his straights allowed him to hope to be among the best.
Now, the main virtue of the Reef native was understanding the format of the race, which was divided between two sprints and the grand final.
In the first heat (the 27 drivers were separated into two groups, one of 14 and the other of 13), Canapino participated, who avoided the collision between his teammate, Roman Grosjean, with Scott Dixon and Rinus VeeKay and took the opportunity to take the fifth place and not let go again in the 10 scheduled laps.
Thanks to that,
he finished in the top six and went to the final
.
💥 GROSJEAN'S MISSUP!
🏁 The review of the moment that Agustín Canapino's teammate misled in Heat 1 of IndyCar.
pic.twitter.com/iBMr5undA6
— ESPN Argentina (@ESPNArgentina) March 24, 2024
And in the final, which was 20 laps although it had a break halfway through, the Titan stood out again.
With a wheel management, he did not go full throttle in the last laps before the stoppage and saved everything for the decisive stage.
At that moment, he stepped on the accelerator fully, applied his strategy (he only had a small error in the effort to climb another position) and crowned a top 10 that excites him for what follows in the championship.
🏁 Final at Thermal Club: P10
First Top 10 in IndyCar!!
😁
Very good weekend, always competitive on a very changing and difficult circuit.
Thank you very much @juncoshollinger!!
Enjoy it and keep working hard ✊️ pic.twitter.com/zutwkxriMB
— Agustín Canapino 🇦🇷 (@AgustinCanapino) March 24, 2024
Money is not everything
The winner of the race in Thermal, one that did not award points for the tournament, was
Alex Palou
and he took home $500,000.
And
Canapino, 10th in the final table, kept $23,000
, the same money as the last one.
In any case, he took away from the American West the certainty that he still has a way to go but that every day he is more settled in a category that gives you no respite.
Canapino's word after his top 10 at the Thermal Club
"It was a very good weekend for us, from lowest to highest, always in the top 10 positions. Once again, confirming the progression we have been having. Heat 1 was very good, I was able to survive that first corner and then have a very good pace to finish fifth in the pace of the leaders. In the main race I started 9th and decided to conserve tires to be able to attack the last 10 laps. Unfortunately, we had a very big problem with the set of tires in the main race and At no time did I have the performance I had before. So I was able to do everything I could and finish 10th in the pace of that middle group that we all came together in. I'm happy, it's my first top 10 that allows me to continue growing and learning day by day. "You have to enjoy this and work hard for what's to come," said the Argentine.