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How Marco Andretti proved he's not just a name

A brilliant drive at Iowa finally gave Marco Andretti his second IndyCar win, and silenced the American's many doubters, as Jeff Olson explained

Talk of Marco Andretti's struggles doesn't make him bristle anymore. Not this week, anyway. Now he just chuckles quietly when the subject arises. 'Drought? Slump?' his eyes seem to say. 'That's a bit harsh, right?'

But the truth is, the haters have been on Andretti's porch for some time, howling behind interweb anonymity about the silver-spoon racer who had little more than a name and one victory on his resume. They chirped with every horrid qualifying session and post-race grumble. It seemed the very mention of Marco Andretti made some folks' skin crawl. For every race without a trophy, the volume of the derision amplified. At one point, he was leading a blog's W***er of the Year contest. Until the blog floated to the top of the online pond belly-up, presumably when its owner was forced from his parents' basement in search of gainful employment.

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