Freischaltung » . ... With the Pistons moving to

LONG POND, Pa. -- One year after he was killed in a freak accident at Pocono Raceway, it was natural that Justin Wilson was in everyones thoughts this weekend, when the Verizon IndyCar Series returned to the Tricky Triangle.Wilson died on Aug. 24, 2015, when he was struck on the helmet by a piece of flying debris from a car that crashed nearly half a mile up the track. The recent death of USAC star (and occasional IndyCar racer) Bryan Clauson in a Midget car only added to the feeling of sadness hanging over the Pocono tri-oval.While the IndyCar community is reflecting this weekend on the losses of Wilson and Clauson, series officials remain focused on improving cockpit safety to minimize the chances that an incident similar to Wilsons could happen again. IndyCar has closely monitored cockpit safety advances such as the canopy developed by Don Schumacher Racing for NHRA Top Fuel drag racing cars and initiatives being explored by Formula One, including a wraparound aeroscreen and a carbon composite halo.The series faces two key challenges in proceeding with some form of cockpit protection for its open-wheel cars. The wide variety of tracks, from walled-in street courses to high-banked ovals, creates visibility and sight line issues that might preclude the use of a halo. In addition, the solution must be adaptable to the current Dallara DW-12 chassis, which is expected to be in use for at least three more years.Were working on two or three different directions, said Jay Frye, IndyCar president of operations and competition. Obviously, safety is our No. 1 priority, so its something weve been working hard at for the last six to eight months, whether its a screen or a halo or possibly some other type of idea coming out.Because what we do is so diverse, you cant maybe have just one configuration that goes across the board, he added. So were looking at all kinds of different things. We are collaborating with lots of different people to come up with what could be the best solution. Is it a 2017 initiative or a 2018 initiative? At this point, were really not sure. Obviously, we want to make sure we get it right. As soon as we get it right and ready to go, we will implement it as soon as we can.Respected orthopedic surgeon Terry Trammell, who has worked with open-wheel sanctioning bodies on safety-related matters for decades, is leading IndyCars research efforts. Trammell revealed that the latest direction of development is what he called a deflector reminiscent of the canopy on an F-16 fighter jet.?With Trammell often assisting, open-wheel sanctioning bodies have made numerous changes to the cockpit area the past two decades. CART introduced raised cockpit sides in 1996 and a year later mandated a wider cockpit area that incorporated a padded, horseshoe-shaped collar that fits over the drivers shoulders.This year, in the wake of an accident in May 2015 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, in which a suspension arm pierced the monocoque and caused serious injury to driver James Hinchcliffe, IndyCar added additional strengthening panels to the sides of the tub.The head surround in the Indy car is probably one of the most advanced features to protect against head injury because it, by itself, absorbs head impact into the head surround very well and better now than it did even two years ago because of the evolution of what weve built into it, Trammell said. That whole complex system of what goes on inside the chassis, inside the tub around the driver -- we package them much better now than we did, certainly much better now than 20 years ago and really better than we did 10 years ago.The unusual nature of Wilsons accident, which occurred less than a year after Jules Bianchis fatal accident in the 2014 Japanese Grand Prix Formula One race (when his car slid under a safety vehicle tending to a wrecked car and caused a massive head injury), has made the search for a safe way to enclose the cockpit of an open-wheel car the highest priority for sanctioning bodies around the globe.But IndyCar doesnt want to rush a flawed solution into action before it can be adequately tested and proven. ??I wouldnt say were close, Frye said. Were very aggressively going after the right solution, and were probably close to coming up with a direction. But whenever you do something like that, theres a cause and effect in everything you do. So theres going to have to be some testing that goes along with it. I dont think working with an existing tub is a big issue. We deal with lots of smart people every day, so retrofitting it will not be that difficult. It just depends on what it is.Theres issues like product supply, and theres the cost. So far, weve been surprised in a good way because I think we can do some different things that are very, very good, and its going to be more economical than we thought to was going to be. So thats always a nice surprise.The one-in-a-billion randomness of Wilsons accident made his passing somewhat easier to accept for IndyCar drivers, who are generally happy with the safety record of the current car, as well as the series efforts to develop additional improvements.I think they have done a good job on safety, IndyCar Series points leader Simon Pagenaud?said. This year, they have done tremendous improvements on the cars, and theyre being proactive, which is awesome to hear for the future.Personally, Id like to have something [protecting the cockpit] because you dont like to think what could happen -- thats the nature of being a human being. I know its a dangerous sport, and its never going to be fully safe. The human body is not meant to travel more than 200 mph. But if we can do something to protect us and make it better, Im all for it.The progress that has been made over the years is even more pronounced for veteran drivers who were around to drive previous generations of Indy cars.I think the series has done a really good job with safety, said Juan Pablo Montoya, whose IndyCar career dates to 1999, when he won the CART-sanctioned series as a 23-year-old rookie. I think in the last 10, 15 years weve come a long, long way.You cant prevent everything -- its motor racing. Theres always a danger to it, and as drivers, we need to accept that. 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The nimble-footed quarterback got his wish, dashing through the snow and a weary defence all the way into the NCAA record book.AUBURN HILLS, Mich. -- Stan Van Gundy has been waiting all season for his Detroit Pistons to show the kind of determination that got them into the playoffs.Friday night, he got a glimpse.The Pistons blew an 18-point lead in the third quarter, but rallied down the stretch to beat the Los Angeles Clippers 108-97.Detroit had lost 11 straight to the Clippers, including a 114-82 rout at the Staples Center on Nov. 7.We got embarrassed the last time we played that team, and I knew these guys didnt want that to happen again, Van Gundy said. But beating that team is going to take 48 minutes of effort and we havent been able to do that many times this season.Detroit won its second straight and improved to 7-2 at home, as opposed to 1-7 on the road.Im very happy with the way we played tonight, but we have to be able to take this level of effort on the road, Van Gundy said. Weve got four road games in the next seven days against really good teams. We cant keep giving those games away.The Clippers lost for just the second time in 13 games, falling to 7-1 on the road.Give the Pistons credit; Stan really had them ready to play, Clippers coach Doc Rivers said. They came out with so much more energy that we did in the first 10 minutes, and it is tough to dig yourselves out of a big hole on the road.Kentavious Caldwell-Pope had 16 points and a career-high 10 assists for Detroit and Andre Drummond had 16 points and 10 rebounds. The Pistons got at least 15 points from all five starters and Jon Leuer added 11 points and 11 rebounds off the bench.We are really starting to come together, Drummond said. We are more in sync defensively, and the offensive is starting to come around.J.J. Redick and Blake Griffith each had 24 points for the Clippers, while Chris Paul had eight points to go with 15 assists.This wasnt a lack of effort, Paul said. We were energized, but they made shots.The Pistons trailed by as many as 43 earlier this month in Los Angeles, but jumped out to a 31-14 lead in Fridays first quarter. However, with Drummond limited to 8:19 in the first half by foul trouble and Morris playing just 3:42, the Clippers were able to pull within 57-48 at halftime.The Pistons built the margiin to as many as 18 early in the third, with Caldwell-Pope finding Drummond for several alley-oops.ddddddddddddHowever, Redick took over the game, scoring 10 points in the final 1:27 of the quarter. His back-to-back 3-pointers pulled the Clippers within 82-80 at periods end.We cut into their lead at the end of the third quarter, but we were still making mistakes, Rivers said. When you are that far behind, you have to play perfect basketball or you use up everything getting it close.Redick finished with 18 in the quarter.He did all that against a really good defender in KCP, Van Gundy said. I was sitting on the bench wondering how I didnt win 65 games a year when I was coaching him in Orlando.Los Angeles scored the first four points of the fourth to take the lead, but stopped hitting shots. That let the Pistons respond with a 15-2 run, capped off by Caldwell-Popes 3-pointer to make it 97-86 with 5:14 to play.We didnt panic, Caldwell-Pope said. We just kept doing what we had been doing all game, and kept trying to make J.J. work.TIP-INSClippers: Paul didnt score in the second half, but put up 10 assists. ... With the Pistons moving to Little Caesars Arena for the 2017-18 season, this was the Clippers final regular-season visit to the Palace of Auburn Hills.Pistons: Guard Stanley Johnson was suspended for one game after an unspecified violation of team rules. That left the Pistons without three rotation guards, as both Reggie Jackson and Reggie Bullock missed the game with left knee injuries.PLAY MAKERWith Jackson not expected to play his first game until next week, Caldwell-Pope was the first Detroit player to reach double figures in assists in a game.VISITING CELEBRITYDuring a timeout, the Palace scoreboard showed Darius Slays interception of Sam Bradfords pass that helped the Detroit Lions beat the Minnesota Vikings 16-13 on Thanksgiving. Slay, one of several Lions in attendance, then autographed a football and tossed it to the crowd.UP NEXTClippers: Visit the Indiana Pacers on Sunday.Pistons: Visit the Oklahoma City Thunder on Saturday. ' ' '