Poll results: Majority agree Power not to blame for restart collision
From Tuesday, April 1 to Friday, April 6, 2014, the Motors page on Fox Sports 1 held a poll asking whether fans thought IndyCar were right to relieve Will Power of blame following the controversial restart on Lap 82 of the 2014 Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg.
63 percent of our fans agreed with IndyCar, which determined that Power was not to blame given the fact that he had not reached the restart zone yet, and that he had not touched the brakes or slowed down prior to the restart zone.
37 percent of our fans disagreed with IndyCar, pointing to the fact that Power brought the field down to the restart at an excessively slow pace, and that he stated that he 'lifted off the throttle' before the restart, after seeing Helio Castroneves behind him attempt a pass.
Will Power went on to win the race while Jack Hawksworth and Marco Andretti crashed out of the race during the Lap 82 restart.
"Will caused the crash," said Michael Andretti during the NBC broadcast, "I mean, he stood on it and then backed [off], he got the accordion effect going and then the guys at the back had nowhere to go."
"They threw the green early," Power stated after the race. "I thought we were meant to go in [the restart] zone. So that was - I was surprised."
Though Power was relieved of blame, there are already signs early in the season that correct restart procedure could be a hot topic this year.
