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Indianapolis brought the Formula One season quite fittingly into its second half. We have now seen every type of circuit, from slow to fast, and in Indy's case a mix of extreme slow and fast.
In the previous races at the brickyard, with the V10 engines, the cars ran quite a lot of downforce - such was the power from the engines that the gains the cars could make on the slow infield section were not offset by the slower top speed on the main straight.
This year, the lower powered V8 cars needed a compromise in downforce to make up for their lack of power. As a result, the cars ran much lighter levels of downforce, making the track very conveniently similar to the Montreal race a week before. Most teams ran similar solutions, with flatter rear wing elements and slimmed front wings.
After the debacle of last year's United States Grand Prix, both tyre suppliers brought a selection of compounds and constructions to safely meet the circuit's needs. Indeed, it was the Bridgestone and Michelin's differing approaches to tyres that shaped the teams' competitiveness, and for Indy the balance shifted towards Bridgestone.
