In a race that can be viewed as a microcosm of his 2018 Verizon IndyCar Series season, Ed Jones showed potential in Saturday’s Bommarito Automotive Group 500 presented by Axalta and Valvoline, only to leave the track wanting for more.
Now, he and the rest of the field must quickly turn their attention to the next event, the Grand Prix of Portland, this weekend.
Jones, driver of the No. 10 NTT DATA Chip Ganassi Racing Honda, ran as high as third under the lights at Gateway Motorsports Park and was in the middle of some intense late-race dicing near the front. He made a memorable pass of Zach Veach going into Turn 1 on Lap 197 for fourth position and was running third with 30 laps to go until slipping four positions over a six-lap span.
After making his final pit stop on Lap 225 of the 248-lap race, Jones settled in to finish eighth. It was his first top-10 result in five races and best showing since taking third place in the second race of the Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix doubleheader in early June.
“It’s been disappointing with the results, but again, I’m happy with the way I’ve driven,” Jones said. “I’m proud of the way I’ve driven, I think the (No.) 10 car has struggled since 2011 since Dario (Franchitti) won the championship.
“Since then, when has someone done what I did at Detroit against Scott (Dixon, his teammate and championship leader)? I fell back behind him, but I outdrove him, I passed him and drove away from him. That hasn’t happened for six years in the (No.) 10 car so, no, I’m proud of what I’ve done.”
Jones was particularly pleased with the move on Veach.
“I could see that there was an opportunity to be taken,” he said. “Everyone was a little bit stacked up, so if I lunged it up the inside, (Veach) couldn’t really brake much deeper on the outside. I made that same move on a few people and really capitalized on it.”
The 2016 Indy Lights champion and 2017 Sunoco Rookie of the Year in the Verizon IndyCar Series, Jones finished 14th in the point standings a year ago driving for Dale Coyne Racing. He sits 12th this season heading to Portland International Raceway but is only 37 points out of the top 10 with two races remaining.
A variety of negatives have hindered him from being higher in the standings. Whether it was a late crash while running second at ISM Raceway, another at the Indianapolis 500 or a red flag during qualifying at Mid-Ohio that negated a fast lap, numerous factors have contributed to his results. In addition to the third-place finish at Detroit, Jones’ only other podium came at Long Beach in April.
“To put it truthfully, it’s just everything that could’ve gone one way or another has gone against me. That’s just the way things are,” Jones said. “Obviously I’m upset about it, but at the same time I’ve had a great opportunity, I’ve learned a lot and I feel like I’m one of the top drivers out there now.
“It’s just the amount of things falling into place, having just a tiny bit of luck and I’ll be right at the front.”
Jones believes that could happen at Portland.
“The funny thing is, I keep getting more optimistic every time something goes wrong because I feel I’m due for something to go right,” he added. “I keep believing that I can get a win, I just need everything to fall in the right place.”
The Verizon IndyCar Series is hosting an open test Thursday for all 25 cars entered at Portland International Raceway since the sport is making its return to the Pacific Northwest city for the first time in 11 years. The official race weekend begins with a pair of practice sessions Friday (1:45 and 5:35 p.m. ET) that will stream live on RaceControl.IndyCar.com, youtube.com/indycar and the INDYCAR Mobile app.
A third practice starts at 2:10 p.m. Saturday ahead of Verizon P1 Award qualifying at 6:20 p.m. Those sessions will also stream live on the same outlets. A same-day qualifying telecast airs at 7:30 p.m. on NBCSN.
The 105-lap race on the 1.964-mile permanent road course airs live, beginning at 2:30 p.m. Sunday on NBCSN and the Advance Auto Parts INDYCAR Radio Network.