Max Chilton was left disappointed after ending the opening race of the 2017 Verizon IndyCar Series season, with the Briton unable to show the true pace he felt he had with his #8 Chip Ganassi Racing machine.
The Briton started seventh on the grid but finished down in sixteenth, with a late pit stop for a splash of fuel ending his chances of a top ten finish, and he admitted that he will need to look back at the race to analyse just went wrong for him around the streets of St. Petersburg.
The positives for Chilton though were the obvious improvements Honda have made during the off-season, with the power unit hitting victory lane with Dale Coyne Racing’s Sebastien Bourdais, and it gives him hope for the rest of the season.
“It was a frustrating day today with the Gallagher team,” said Chilton. “We had a good car and we had good pace all weekend. The Honda program seems to be coming along nicely, which is encouraging.
“I think we just need to go back and really look at our race, how it unfolded and see what we can do better on next time. Sixteenth is not where we want to be especially when we had a car that should have qualified in the Firestone Fast Six.”
