INDYCAR: Top 10 Stories Of 2012

Marshall Pruett tears through a packed season of IndyCar stories and themes to pick his Top 10 and assembles an amusing list of honorable mentions.

Marshall Pruett | Posted December 28, 2012

2: Ryan Hunter-Reay Wins His First IndyCar Championship

Lucy finally held onto the football and let Charlie Brown kick that sucker dead center through the uprights.

Like the cartoon character, Ryan Hunter-Reay had grown accustom to falling ass over tea kettle as he bounced from team to team when jobs disappeared, but for once, there were no surprises, no disappointment and no one trying to take the ball away.

RHR, engineer Ray Gosselin and his Andretti Autosport team won more races than anyone, went on a 3-race winning streak at just the right time, used Michael Andretti’s strategic Hail Mary at Baltimore to thrust himself back into title contention, and was ice cold throughout the final race as he watched Will Power crash and drove his way to his first IndyCar championship.

It was the Hollywood ending for the All-American kid, and in any other year, RHR’s rise to beat the best Team Penske and Target Chip Ganassi Racing had to offer would be the No. 1 story, but sadly, it isn’t.

INDYCAR: Hunter-Reay Wins Baltimore; Title Heads To Finale

INDYCAR: Hunter-Reay Wins Championship By 3 Points, Carpenter Takes The Race

INDYCAR: Hunter-Reay Elated, Relieved To Win His First Title