Chevrolet Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix - Fantasy Racing

It's a week after the Indy 500, and the cars, drivers, and teams are ready to get back on the track! After a month on the famed oval, the series again returns to the road and street courses. This week, it's a return to the great circuit at Belle Isle in Detroit.

Things are going to get dicey in a hurry in the IndyCar Series, as the 500 began a string of five straight weeks of racing. After Belle Isle this week, it's three straight ovals. So a lot of technical changes are up and coming from the fastest course in the world in Indy to a tight, winding, temporary street course in Detroit. Let the fun begin!



The name of the game this weekend is small teams. With a lot of teams losing the terrible Lotus power and moving either to Chevy or Honda, a few newer names might be worth taking. Oriol Servia has been a hard charger in every race this year, with or without Lotus. He can start at the front now with Chevy, or he can start in the back and charge like he has all year. Sebastien Bourdais, always a great road racer, has Chevy power again as well. And he LOVES driving in the rain...and currently race day forecast shows a 40% chance of rain. So if the rain forecast increases between now and 9 am, Bourdais is a must.

Another guy who has turned heads in the last two or three races is Justin Wilson. He was in the Firestone Fast Six at Long Beach, but he failed a tech inspection and had to start at the back of the pack. He then made his way to the top five for a good chunk of the 500 last week. I say pick him with confidence heading to another street circuit. And then the practice times come out: 2nd behind only Will Power. PICK HIM UP! HE'S A MUST HAVE THIS WEEK AS A SMALL TEAM MAN!

Roger Penske and Belle Park Grand
Prix Chairman Bud Denker

Even with the small teams looking good for this week, I still like a couple of the big guys because it's a new circuit this year. Roger Penske worked hard to get this event back on the IndyCar schedule. His drivers Will Power and Ryan Briscoe are 1st and 3rd respectively on practice speed so far. I know, Power is always a smart and obvious choice on the road courses, and you'd like to save a couple spots for him at the end of the year. But he is just too good to pass up at this point, especially with a new track.

Here are my official picks for the week. Enjoy the weather up there in Belle Isle!

• Will Power
• Ryan Briscoe
• Justin Wilson
• Oriol Servia
• Scott Dixon