Limited street course track time constricts the learning curve for Brabham and Jones
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (August 8, 2023) – Mother Nature played more than a small part in the INDY NXT by Firestone Music City Grand Prix, as the Cape Motorsports team dealt with weather conditions that limited track time ahead of Sunday’s race – the only fully dry session of the weekend.
Matthew Brabham – winner of the 2012 USF2000 championship, the second of what would be nine straight series championships for the Cape team – and Jagger Jones had planned to work together throughout the race weekend, helping the rookie team add to its knowledge base. But Brabham missed all but five laps of the first practice session with a clutch release issue, with Jones focusing on learning the circuit. Rain during the second session meant only a few laps with limited slick tire running. With qualifying canceled due to standing water, the grid was set on entrant points.
At race start, the back of the grid was not in double-file formation, so the yellow flag flew. Lining up once again, the cars were in much better shape the second time around, and at the drop of the green, both drivers looked to make a move. Jones went to the left while Brabham took the right – and the right paid off, as Brabham was able to slide by Jones and Rasmus Lindh to take 12th. On lap four, Brabham made another move into P11 while Jones got past Lindh as well to grab 12th, as both drivers settled into the street course rhythm.
Brabham stapled himself onto Kyffin Simpson’s rear wing, looking for a chance to make a move into the top 10, while Jones and Lindh battled back-and-forth for P12. Both Simpson and Brabham passed to the inside of Reece Gold on lap 11, when Gold locked up and went wide through turn one, putting Brabham into the top 10. As Gold fell down the order, Jones passed him as well, into 12th.
But on lap 27, Brabham moved alongside Simpson to try to get past, but realized mid-corner that he wasn’t going to make it. Showing his significant experience level, he got out of the throttle, barely tapping the tire barrier – but down in 16th once he got back to full power. With his teammate’s woes, Jones moved up to 11th, looking to get around Lindh at the halfway point – and just before the race’s first full course caution for a car that did tag the wall.
Jones got a solid jump on the restart, making a daring move on Simpson through turns one and two to try to get into the top 10, but couldn’t make the pass stick, while Brabham began carving his way back through the field. A caution for another car into the wall with 12 laps to go moved Jones to 10th and Brabham to 14th. The green flew once again with nine laps remaining, but Jones found that a throttle sensor had failed, bringing him to pit lane as another caution flew for another incident.
On the restart, Brabham battled Louis Foster, Josh Pierson and Yuven Sundaramoorthy for 10th position, with the trio jostling their way over the Korean Veterans Memorial Bridge and through the following corners. Brabham fought hard, finishing 13th, with Jones 17th.
“Nashville is a great place for a race, but for us as a team, a difficult weekend,” said Dominic and Nicholas Cape. “Virtually no dry sessions, qualifying cancelled, and our first real dry session was the race. I thought Jagger and Mathew did a great job under the difficult circumstances, as did everyone in the team. With all said and done we enjoyed the experience at Nashville, how could you not?”
Next up for Cape Motorsports will be the INDY NXT by Firestone Grand Prix, part of the shared NTT INDYCAR SERIES/NASCAR weekend at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, August 11 and 12. Practice and qualifying sessions will be broadcast on INDYCAR LIVE and INDYCAR Radio, with the race live on Peacock.
QUOTEBOARD
JAGGER JONES – No. 98 Total Sim/Mecum Auctions Dallara
Start – 14th / Finish – 17th
“Between Friday and Saturday, I only had about 10 laps on slick tires, so it wasn’t enough to properly learn the track. The race felt more like practice, the track was so green. I did get some wet running but it’s a completely different track when you’re on slicks and running 15 mph faster. It was tough, but as a driver, you have to rise to the occasion. I got comfortable quickly in the race, knowing that we were all in the same position. We had a competitive car and I focused on racing smart – my mindset was to put myself in good positions, limit mistakes and take what the race would give me. I knew there would be issues late and I wanted to make sure I was in the mix for a top eight or top 10 finish. But late in the race, I started having throttle issues and at the late restart, I had nothing – but at least I was able to get to pit lane.
“It was great having Matthew there and in a normal race weekend, we’d have learned a lot and made a lot of progress. But the conditions really limited us, we didn’t get into any kind of rhythm. I’ve known him for a long time – he’s a very talented driver and really knows these cars. It would be great to have him back!”
MATTHEW BRABHAM – No. 47 Cape Brothers Speed Shop Company Dallara
Start – 15th / Finish – 13th
“The weather didn’t cooperate for pretty much the entire weekend, until the race. It was disappointing to start on points, which put us in the back, because it’s so hard to pass here. The race didn’t quite go as planned, though I was one of the big movers early. I haven’t raced much on this tire so I was guessing a bit in regard to what I could do and outbroke myself a bit. Got away without any damage and didn’t take anyone with me, which was lucky. But if I’d kept that position, I’d have been right up there, on for a very good result. By the end of the race, I had no tires and no push-to-pass left, but I’m happy with the moves we were able to make.”
