Is Bourdais one of the best drivers ever?
Racer’s track record in Toronto alone shows his level of greatness Bourdais has high hopes he can win the Honda Indy Toronto.
On June 9 in Texas, Scott Dixon captured his 43rd IndyCar win, putting him alone in third place behind A.J. Foyt and Mario Andretti on the all-time winners list and solidifying his position as one of the best Indy drivers of all time.
Sebastien Bourdais, the only driver within shouting distance of Dixon and who will be in Toronto next weekend to race in the Honda Indy Toronto, is sixth on the all-time list with 37. But should he be considered a member of that elite group of great drivers?
Much like Canadian Robert Wickens has this season, Bourdais exploded onto the scene in his rookie year. Fifteen years ago, the baby-faced Frenchman from Le Mans showed up in St. Petersburg, Fla., with Newman-Haas Racing, won the pole by more than a half second over Paul Tracy, and led until the first pit stop sequence when his inexperience on cold tires caught him off guard.
Tracy, who went on to win that race as well as the 2003 Championship, knew right then a new star had arrived.
“I was like, how was I going to beat this guy?” Tracy said. “That’s probably why I got into so much conflict with him. I typically got in conflict with guys that I was intimidated by how fast they were.”
“Intimidating” and “fast” best describe Bourdais’ first five years in the series.
He went on to win three races that rookie year, finishing fourth in the standings, and was untouchable after that, domi- nating the series on the way to collecting four-straight championships. He remains the only Indy driver to ever accomplish that feat.
“I just kind of got into a hot seat and went on with it,” said Bourdais. “The car was perfect for me and I gave my best and it always seemed to work out. It was quite spectacular for me.”
And then after his fourth title in 2007, he left to pursue Formula 1 and Le Mans sports cars.
But after an unsuccessful season and a half with Scuderia Toro Rosso, and some successful races with Peugeot in endurance racing, including a pair of second-place finishes at his hometown event in Le Mans, he returned to race in North America in 2011.
Unlike his first go-around, however, there was no top team with a seat available for him. He eventually made his comeback with Dale Coyne Racing.
When asked what he thought, Bourdais deferred saying he couldn’t make the comparisons until his career was over. But if you look at the wins to starts, Bourdais is actually the better bet. Dixon’s 43 wins have come in 297 starts, or a win in every 6.9 races. Bourdais’ 37 wins have come in only 181 starts, or one checkered flag every 4.9 starts.
Another measure of greatness is consistency and knowing when, and when not, to take chances to make sure you finish. That’s a hallmark of Dixon, and Bourdais’ Toronto results show he’s cut from the same fireproof material. In 13 starts he has two wins, eight top 5s and only one finish outside the top10. He’s also completed1,065 of a possible 1,072 laps. Not an easy task on a bumpy city street track.