Sébastien Bourdais says he has been left “speechless” by his victory in the season-opening Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, after the four-time champion completed a masterful drive from 21st and last on the grid.
After his team opted not to pit during the second caution period, caused after a collision between Tony Kanaan and Mikhail Aleshin, Dale Coyne driver Bourdais soon found himself in second position, behind reigning champion Simon Pagenaud.
Shortly after the restart Bourdais lunged up the inside of Pagenaud for the lead of the race, and from that moment onwards didn’t look back on his way to victory lane for the first time since Detroit last season.
"Honestly, I'm a little speechless," enthused Bourdais, who lives in St. Petersburg. "We had a miserable day [in qualifying] and that was all me, and we turned it into a great day.
“Once you're in the lead here, it's difficult to lose it unless you throw it away, so I sure tried not to do that again.”
During the 2003 ChampCar race Bourdais took pole and led during the early stages of the race, before losing the lead in the first round of pit-stops and then making contact with the wall, which scuppered his chances of victory around the Florida street course.
“I caught myself thinking about 2003, when obviously we started the opposite,” continued Bourdais.
“We dominated the weekend, were on pole, cleared the field, then all hell broke loose.
“I found myself tapping the wall in Turn 8 and threw it away. It was kind of redemption day here.”
Fellow countryman and reigning champion Simon Pagenaud also took advantage of the second caution period to rise up through the order, eventually finishing second and creating the first ever 1-2 finish for French drivers in the history of IndyCar.
“Bourdais was untouchable,” explained Pagenaud. “It’s a French 1-2. I'm very happy for him.
“With Dale Coyne and Honda, they've shown a lot of strength. It’s fantastic for them.
“I wish it was P1 for me, P2 for him. Next time maybe. I’m very happy for second. We started second last year as well. Hopefully it's our good luck charm."
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