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April 19, 2009

RACE RECAP

Filed under: IRL — Lynne Huntting @ 6:22 pm

DARIO FRANCHITTI/No.9 Target Chip Ganassi Racing won the 35th Annual Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach, leading twice for 51 laps. He turned the fastest leading lap of 1:11.8852/98.557 mph on Lap 70 of the 85-lap race. The crowd which saw Franchitti win was larger than last year. Overall the attendance was 175,000 for all three days, up from 170,000 last year.

Franchitti said “I finished second here twice to Ganassi cars, and I learned the secret and won. I had fun on my little holiday for a while (referencing his run at NASCAR) but I’m so glad to be back racing IndyCars.”

Team Owner CHIP GANASSI said “This place is good to us.”

Pole Sitter WILL POWER/No.12 Team Penske finished second after leading the first sixteen laps. During an on track incident, Power – who had no telemetry and faulty communications – heard a partial conversation saying ‘full course yellow’ and he slowed … only to be passed by two cars, as the incident hadn’t brought out the caution. The team had to resort to the old fashioned pit board.

It was a bittersweet finish for the Aussie. Power had been hired as a substitute driver for HELIO CASTRONEVES/No.3 Team Penske, while the Brazilian was involved with his Federal tax evasion and conspiracy court case. Power drove the car in pre-season testing and in the first race at St. Pete, finishing sixth. Friday Castroneves was acquitted of his tax evasion charges and Power turned over the No.3 car to Castroneves Saturday, and drove a third Penske car, No.12. Power will also race it at the Indianapolis 500. Other than that, Power has no ride. Team Owner, ROGER PENSKE, would like to run Power in a third car, but sponsorship is the issue.

Power has been gracious all weekend. “It was tough today. But it’s a great finish, considering all that’s been going on this weekend, switching cars and crews after Helio was able to run. I’ve been so fortunate to be able to run with Team Penske so far”. He said we might see him at Kansas…on the sidelines.

Third finisher was TONY KANAAN/No.11 Andretti Green Racing. His AGR teammate, DANICA PATRICK/No.7 AGR charged from twenty-second to finish fourth, and DAN WHELDON/No.4 Panther Racing was fifth. This is the second race in a row with four different teams having drivers in the top five. Three of the AGR cars were in the top six, with MARCO ANDRETTI/No.26 AGR finishing sixth.

Castroneves finished seventh and was ecstatic. He had been sore Sunday morning after using muscles he hadn’t used in several months, but sunny Sunday afternoon he was feeling no pain, flashing those pearly whites in his trademark smile.

The top Rookie was RAPHAEL MATOS/No.2 Luczo Dragon Racing, in eighth place.

Seven drivers swapped the lead six times: Power, Matos, Kanaan, Andretti, Franchitti, and Castroneves.

RYAN BRISCOE/No.6 Team Penske turned the fastest time of 1:11.2582/99.434 mph on Lap 83. He finished thirteenth.

All the cautions were for contact. No one was injured, but four of the involved cars retired.

It was Franchitti’s ninth IRL victory, first on a street course, and the twenty-fifth for the Ganassi team.

Franchitti leads the points with 84, followed by Power with 69, Briscoe-67, Kanaan-65, and RYAN HUNTER-REAY/No.21 Vision Racing-59, Wheldon-46, Andretti-45, GRAHAM RAHAL/No.2 Newman Haas Lanigan Racing-45, and Patrick-44.

Franchitti said after the race that the Long Beach weekend felt like the good old days of the LBGP. “The stands are getting bigger again, and the fans are loving it, we’re loving being here. The teams and drivers are loving being back. To have that unified series and everything together, it’s cool.”

JIM MICHAELIAN, President of the Grand Prix of Long Beach Association, said that the grandstands were added to look like years before, in hopes the drivers would notice as they went around the track. Obviously, it worked.

The next IndyCar race is next weekend at Kansas Speedway.

RESULTS
1     DARIO FRANCHITTI/Target Chip Ganassi Racing
2     WILL POWER/Team Penske
3     TONY KANAAN/Andretti Green Racing
4     DANICA PATRICK/Andretti Green Racing
5     DAN WHELDON/Panther Racing
6     MARCO ANDRETTI/Andretti Green Racing
7     HELIO CASTRONEVES/Team Penske
8    *RAPHAEL MATOS/Luczo Dragon Racing
9    *ROBERT DOORNBOS/Newman Haas Lanigan Racing
10     ALEX TAGLIANI/Conquest Racing
11     RYAN HUNTER-REAY/Vision Racing
12     GRAHAM RAHAL/Newman Haas Lanigan Racing
13     RYAN BRISCOE/Team Penske
14     VITOR MEIRA/A.J. Foyt Racing
15     SCOTT DIXON/Target Chip Ganassi Racing
16     DARREN MANNING/Dreyer & Reinbold
17     STANTON BARRETT/Team 3G
18     ED CARPENTER/Vision Racing
19     MARIO MORAES/KV Racing Technology
20     HIDEKI MUTOH/Andretti Green Racing
21    *MIKE CONWAY/Dreyer & Reinbold
22     JUSTIN WILSON/Dale Coyne Racing
23     E.J. VISO/HVM Racing

DARIO WINS!

Filed under: IRL — Lynne Huntting @ 3:36 pm

DARIO FRANCHITTI/No.9 Target Chip Ganassi Racing won the inaugural Indy Racing League IndyCar race at the 35th annual Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach and also turned the fastest race lap on Lap Seven. It was a large, enthusiastic crowd, including wife/actress ASHLEY JUDD watching the 2007 IndyCar /Indy 500 champion win. The weather was hot – 96 degrees F.

The first thing he said was Happy Birthday to Ashley.

Pole sitter WILL POWER/No.12 Team Penske led early on, but finished second, with a Margin of Victory being 3.3182 seconds.  TONY KANAAN/No.11 Andretti Green Racing finished third. The Scot’s victory means that his pal TK- who sports a closely-shaved hairdo – has to let his hair grow. When Kanaan wins, Franchitti has to cut his hair. Franchitti had long curly locks at the beginning of the season, and has since trimmed them a bit.

There were five cautions for 18 laps-39.22 minutes in the race which ran 1:59.56, for 85 laps.

Thirteen cars were on the lead lap.

Franchitti said the timing of the first pit stop was the turning point for him in the race. He was the first to pit, swapping his red alternate tires for the harder blacks.

MORE TO FOLLOW

A GREAT DAY FOR THE BEACH!

Filed under: Uncategorized — Lynne Huntting @ 1:02 pm

It’s a beautiful day at Long Beach for the 35th Annual Toyota Grand Prix. The temperatures reached 94 by noon. Skies are blue and there are people everywhere. And lots of skin. Photographers will have a field day with all the skimpy outfits

Saturday evening JIM MICHAELIAN, President of Grand Prix of Long Beach Association, wouldn’t quote specific figures, but did say that Friday’s attendance was up 10-12 per cent. Saturday’s attendance was flat, about the same as last year, although there was some walk-up, mostly General Admission. He couldn’t yet equate any stats to the ‘Castroneves effect’ but should on Sunday. The retail vendors seem pleased..if you could get close enough to ask.

In the Sunday morning warmup, Rookie RAPHAEL MATOS/No.2 Luczo Dragon Racing was fastest, followed by Rookie MIKE CONWAY/No.24 Dreyer & Reinbold, JUSTIN WILSON/No.18 Dale Coyne Racing, SCOTT DIXON/No.9 Target Chip Ganassi Racing, and DAN WHELDON/No.4 Panther Racing.

IndyCar driver, HELIO CASTRONEVES/No.3 Team Penske was cleared to drive after Saturday’s whack into the wall giving him a headache. A crew had told me Saturday night that he was fine, and fixing the car would be no problem – just throw some new parts on and he’d be good to go. He was tenth. All 23 drivers were on course.

Thursday TERRY ANGSTADT, Indy Racing League President, Commercial Division, spoke at “The Race Goes Green” conference. Among the things he said was that IRL “was looking at a couple of new markets, possibly as soon as next year.” How coincidental that a large contingent of Brazilians are visiting the IRL paddock this weekend, including the mayor of the area interested in having an IRL race. Some of the gossip in the paddock has China being another venue.

The series which started as an American series for American drivers on oval tracks has evolved into an international series. It races in Motegi Japan, and runs a variety of ovals, road courses and street circuits. The 23-car field at Long Beach includes six Americans, five Brazilians, four Brits, two Australians; and one each from Canada, Japan, Netherlands, New Zealand, Scotland, and Venezuela,

Firestone has brought two sets of tires for the IndyCar race. The primary tires (blacks) this weekend are different and harder, than the opening race at St. Petersburg. The alternate tires (reds) are the same as St. Pete.

Regarding the engine package for 2010, Angstadt said a group of manufacturers was formed, at the Board level, and IRL is hoping to hear from them soon.

The IndyCar race will start 1:30PM PDT and shown live on VERSUS.

April 18, 2009

WHERE THERE’S A WILL, THERE’S A POLE • HELIO’S HEADACHE

Filed under: IRL — Lynne Huntting @ 4:40 pm

WILL POWER/No.12 Team Penske has the pole for the first IndyCar Series race at the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach. This makes his lap of 1:09.7107 a new track record.

The weather was hot – 83F/23C ambient and 112 F/44C  track temperature, with blue skies and lots of happy fans.

Repeating St Pete’s race, five different teams qualified in the top six.

The top six drivers were: Power, DARIO FRANCHITTI/No.10 Target Chip Ganassi Racing; Rookie RAPHAEL MATOS/Luczo Dragon Racing; EJ VISO/HVM Racing; JUSTIN WILSON/No.18 Dale Coyne Racing; and SCOTT DIXON/No.9 Target Chip Ganassi Racing.

Power said “It was obvious in the first session you had to use reds. So he saved his for the last session and his big lap at the end. I was working with a new engineer and crew. There were a few bugs to iron out, but it turned out good.

“There were a lot of little details to work out, such as pedal adjustment. I was the team on the other side of the truck. I hardly made any adjustments on either car.”

Power’s two Penske teammates had problems in the third of four qualifying sessions, making owner ROGER PENSKE, visibly wince.  HELIO CASTRONEVES/No.3 lost it and rear-ended the Shoreline Drive concrete wall pretty hard. He had already qualified eighth. Castroneves was seen by IRL Director of Medical Services, MICHAEL OLINGER, and found to have no signs of a concussion, However, Castroneves complained of a headache and will be re-evaluated in the morning. At this point, he’s not cleared to drive. Castroneves had his IRL physical Saturday morning. All IRL drivers take an Impact test at the beginning of the season, which is used for baseline at a later time.

RYAN BRISCOE/No.6 Team Penske stalled on course, and he will start tenth.

The noon Team Penske press conference with ROGER PENSKE, Castroneves and Team Penske President, TIM CINDRIC, was well attended, and the camera shutters clicked loudly and non-stop.

Castroneves said “I feel like I just woke up from a nightmare.”

Penske said the crew for the third IRL car was on site at the beginning of the weekend. “We deal in anticipation not expectation.” Race Engineer NIGEL BERESFORD flew in from England and JOHN ERICKSON, who runs the Penske Grand-Am crew, is the race strategist for Power. Penske said “We won one of our biggest races ever, getting Helio back in the car. A race is a race. This is a person’s life, his future, which is certainly a lot more important than wining a race.”

When asked why he was so supportive of Castroneves, Penske said “There was no reason for me not to support him. Our team and sponsors were concerned, but he had to know the folks with whom he’d been around for so long were with him. Everything was so negative in the press. He was guilty if you read the paper. We had to have our arms around him. We talked a number of time, in racing terms – seconds ahead, seconds behind.

“When you have a team and someone has issues, you try to stand by him. That’s the DNA of our company.”

Sunday’s 85-lap race start at 1:10 PDT and will be shown live on VERSUS.

QUALIFYING TIMES
1    WILL POWER/Team Penske                                            1:09.7107
2    DARIO FRANCHITTI/Target Chip Ganassi                  1:09.8675
3   *RAPHAEL MATOS/Luczo Dragon Racing                    1:10.2043
4    EJ VISO/HVM Racing                                                        1:10.2232
5    JUSTIN WILSON/Dale Coyne Racing                             1:10.2680
6    SCOTT DIXON/Target Chip Ganassi Racing                  1:10.4038
7    GRAHAM RAHAL/Newman Haas Lanigan Racing       1:10.0283
8    HELIO CASTRONEVES/Team Penske                             1:10.1139
9    ALEX TAGLIANI/Conquest Racing                                   1:10.1278
10    RYAN BRISCOE/Team Penske                                           1:10.2126
11    TONY KANAAN/Andretti Green Racing             1:10.3022
12    RYAN HUNTER-REAY/Vision Racing                1:10.4339
13    MARIO MORAES/KV Racing Technology             1:10.8459
14    DAN WHELDON/Panther Racing                    1:10.5503
15   *ROBERT DOORNBOS/Newman Haas Lanigan Racing   1:10.9577
16   *MIKE CONWAY/Dreyer & Reinbold Racing         1:10.6059
17    HIDEKI MUTOH/Andretti Green Racing           1:11.1177
18    DARREN MANNING/Dreyer & Reinbold Racing      1:11.2411
19    MARCO ANDRETTI/Andretti Green Racing         1:11.2307
20    VITOR MEIRA/A.J. Foyt Enterprises            1:11.4487
21   *STANTON BARRETT/CCURB/Agajanian/Team 3G      1:11.4863
22    DANICA PATRICK/Andretti Green Racing         1:11.666
23    ED CARPENTER/Vision Racing                   1:11.9069
*-Rookie

DANCING WITH CARS

Filed under: IRL — Lynne Huntting @ 11:42 am

It was a warm and wonderful Saturday morning at the 35th Annual Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach – Day Two. Skies were blue, crowds were plentiful and things were going well. Unofficially, the Friday attendance was said to be 50,000 – more than last year’s Friday?

DARIO FRANCHITTI/No.10 Target Chip Ganassi was fastest overall Saturday in the Indy Racing League IndyCar practice, despite a spin into the tires during the second half of the bifurcated hour-long session. His best time was 100.801 on Lap 4 of the nine he ran.

Overall, the top five were EJ VISO/No.13 HVM, WILL POWER in his new to him No.12 Team Penske, SCOTT DIXON/No.9 Target Chip Ganassi and JUSTIN WILSON/No.18 Dale Coyne Racing. Power ran 14 laps.

MIKE CONWAY/No.24 Dreyer & Reinbold was the top Rookie, in eighth position, behind HELIO CASTRONEVES, out in the No.3 Team Penske for the first time since last October.

Castroneves went out in the first and second halves of the practice session. For a driver who hadn’t been in an IndyCar since last October, the rust shook off quickly. It didn’t take him long to get up to speed, literally and figuratively. He ran second of the thirteen cars in the first session and ran 27 laps overall.

Team Penske Owner, ROGER PENSKE, was at the track, in the pits and paddock, and riding here and there on his scooter. A Saturday noon press conference is scheduled for the team, with Penske, Team Penske President, TIM CINDRIC, and Castroneves.

TONY KANAAN/No.11 Andretti Green Racing was fastest in the first half hour of practice, in a 14-car field.

HIDEKI MUTOH/No.27 Andretti Green Racing got loose and spun hard into a concrete barrier, causing severe right hand damage to the car – both wheels, front suspension, etc. He was not hurt and walked to the response vehicle. It was the only caution in the first session, and took nearly seven minutes while the clock ticked.

Qualifying is at 2:10 PDT.

April 17, 2009

TRACY TO RUN INDY 500

Filed under: Uncategorized — Lynne Huntting @ 5:14 pm

Friday was the day for all kinds of announcements at the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach.

It was not totally unexpected that KV Racing Technology would announce Friday that veteran open wheel racer, PAUL TRACY of Canada, would race No.15 GEICO-KV Racing Technology for the team at the Indianapolis 500 race this year. He said “I’m excited and ready to get back out there and show what I can do.”

GEICO also sponsors another veteran open wheel (and road racer) driver, MAX PAPIS who is now running selected NASCAR races.

Present for the announcement were Tracy, KV owners, KEVIN KALKHOVEN and JIMMY VASSER, flanked by a full-sized GEICO gecko. Kalkhoven joked that GEICO chose Tracy because he most looked like the caveman. (ED note for those who don’t understand the in-joke, GEICO has run a series of not always well-received ads using a caveman).

Tracy talked about not having to take the Indy 500 Rookie test. “I don’t think they’ll let past winners take the Rookie training” – his one last jab at IRL who had to decide who won the 2002 Indianapolis 500. Tracy felt he won but IRL awarded the photo-finish victory to HELIO CASTRONEVES.

At one point, a journalist (maybe a plant?) asked about the plans for Papis, and the two of them racing together, in either IRL or NASCAR. The gecko nuzzled up to Tracy, stood up and took off his head mask. It was a grinning Papis. He will be racing the NASCAR Sprint Cup 600 race at Lowe’s Motor Speedway at the same time that Tracy is running the Indy 500. Papis said the only problem now is – who will wear the GEICO Gecko outfit that day.

Tracy’s first run in an IRL IndyCar was last year’s Canadian race in Edmonton, where he started fifteenth and finished fourth. He has been racing indy cars for nineteen years, and was the 2003  champion in the Champ Car World Series.

Tracy said “I feel I have some unfinished business at the Brickyard and with the support of GEICO and an outstanding team like KV Racing Technology, I feel good about our chances at this year’s.

The team owners were asked about Tracy running other races, such as Toronto or Edmonton.

Tracy said it is a tough economic time now. He had personal sponsorship with Monster, and small deals here and there in NASCAR. Kalkhoven said we’re going to do as much as we can to maximize the GEICO sponsorship. We’d love to have a third car. It would depend on sponsorship. It’s an entertaining month in May and only a gecko can help it.

CASTRONEVES & POWER TO RACE LONG BEACH

Filed under: BUSINESS,IRL — Lynne Huntting @ 4:10 pm

Indy Racing League’s IndyCar driver, HELIO CASTRONEVES is in the air even as we speak flying from Miami FL back to Long Beach after he was acquitted Friday of Federal tax evasion charges. The popular Brazilian racer had been on trial, along with his older sister/business manager, KATUICIA, and attorney ALAN MILLER. All three had been acquitted of their respective tax evasion charges, and the jury hung on the conspiracy charges against the Castroneves siblings and acquitted Miller on his conspiracy charge.

IRL and Team Penske held a hastily-called press conference Friday afternoon, following two other major driver/team announcements, with Team Penske president TIM CINDRIC: IRL president of competition and racing operations, BRIAN BARNHART, and Team Penske drivers RYAN BRISCOE and WILL POWER, who left after the conference for Friday afternoon practice. Power was fastest and Briscoe was ninth in the session, and the media joked with Power that it was his audition for a full time Penske ride.

Cindric would not comment on the trial or any possibility of a retrial on the conspiracy charges. “I’m a racing guy. That’s technicalities and that’s for someone else at another time.”

Castroneves, who has raced for Team Penske the past ten years, has not been in a race car since last October. His FIA racing license was renewed by ACCUS and he’s good to go. NICK CRAW, President of ACCUS, said it is a full service operation, 24/7. IRL already had Castroneves’ medical, ACCUS had the paperwork, and the license was ready to issue.

Cindric said that Castroneves will sleep better Friday night than previous nights. He’s got energy. Because of the uncertainty of the days’ events, Cindric didn’t know when Castroneves would be available for comment. Cindric hadn’t personally spoken with him since the verdict, but they had exchanged text messages. Cindric said “We’re ready” and Castroneves said “I’m coming.”

Cindric spoke to the logistics of returning Castroneves to Long Beach from the trial. “It’s still work in progress in getting him back. Roger’s resources are beneficial in situations like this. If anyone could get Air Force One, it would be Roger. The basics are – Roger dispatched a plane from Detroit for whenever Helio will be ready. He’ll be here this evening in one of Roger’s planes.”

As promised, Team Owner, ROGER PENSKE, will have a race car for Castroneves. Saturday he will be in No.3 with a full set of Firestone tires – six primarys (blacks) and three alternatives (reds). Castroneves will race No.3 this weekend and going forward. Barnhart said IRL would grant concessions to Team Penske for Saturday morning practice. Castroneves will be allowed to drive in both groups.

Power will finish Friday in No.3. Saturday he will switch to a third Team Penske race car, No.12 with Verizon Wireless sponsorship, taking with him the tires assigned to him. His pit space will be at Pit Entry. Power will be allowed extra practice time Saturday morning in No.12.  His race strategist will be JOHN ERICKSON, from Team Penske’s sports car team.

Power has been filling in for the absent Castroneves, starting with the pre-season testing and the season’s opener race at St. Petersburg, where he started and finished sixth, in No.3. Power drove No.3 in the Friday morning session, finishing fourth overall in a field of 22 drivers.

Power will also race No.12 with Verizon sponsorship in the Indianapolis 500. He only learned of his Indy 500 ride last night, according to Cindric.

Penske is currently in Phoenix with his NASCAR Nationwide Series team. He will fly to Long Beach after Friday night’s race and spend Saturday with the IndyCar team, before flying back to Phoenix for the NASCAR Sprint Cup race. Then, Saturday night Penske will be back on the plane to Long Beach.

Cindric said the team has been dealing with various contingency plans for Helio since before the St. Pete race. “Everything looked like a decision was coming, and we had to have a contingency and reward Will for all he has done, but Helio’s best medicine is to be back in the race car.

“If I didn’t know him that well, I’d question is this the right move. His focus and concentration is among the best, the trust I have in him at Indianapolis. I put him up against the best of them for being mentally prepared.”

Because of the uncertainty of the times, Cindric couldn’t say what other driving opportunities might be available for Power and Team Penske. The only oval race between Long Beach and Indy is Kansas, and at this point Cindric said there were no plans for Power to run that race. “But with us you never know. as we sit here today. always subject to change. This time last year at this time we were focusing on Helio’s dancing, and this year we were focusing on Helio’s trial. I hope next year at this time there’s something more positive on which to focus.”

“We haven’t run three cars for quite awhile. It’s been a bit of a mixed bag and a moving yardstick for us. I’ve heard nothing but support for Helio. I can’t say enough about Will and the task he’s had with all the maybes and what abouts. I don’t want to speculate on what will happen with Will.”

Cindric wasn’t sure about further Verizon sponsorship. “Our plate if pretty full right now going forward. Lots can happen between now and May. We’re playing it a race at a time and focusing on May. Look at Will – our position is that if he was going to run for us, it’s an opportunity for the team to get to work with the guy and the growing pains before we get into May. This year is a short schedule the first week. It is a big advantage for all of us preparing for a third car at Indy.”

COMMENTS:
Cindric said “We’re ecstatic about the outcome. It’s been a very difficult time for all of us, especially Helio and his family. It’s good to know he can go on with his life, business as usual. His usual business is different. I’m looking forward to having him back as a driver in our organization.”

Barnhart said “We couldn’t be happier for Team Penske, Helio Castroneves and his family and look forward to having him back on the race grid at Long Beach. Helio has played an integral part in the growth of the IndyCar Series on and off the race track the past few years and has an incredible legion of fans. He is a true star in every sense of the word and his infectious personality, popularity and success on the race track is welcomed back.” Barnhart joked about looking forward to the driver’s meeting and all Helio’s special questions will begin again

Briscoe said “I’m looking forward to having him back and excited to continue that going forward. Will is in similar shoes as I was couple years ago. Will impressed us all. I’m happy for Helio.”

Power said “I’m very happy for Helio and his family. I can’t imagine what it might be alike. I’m excited to be driving the 12 car and in the Indy 500. The team has made me feel welcome. It’s a  first class team, and I loved working with these guys.”

“I knew the situation and none of this is a surprise, they keep me well informed. I appreciate the way it’s all played out.”

SCOTT DIXON/No.9 Target Chip Ganassi Racing, 2008 IndyCar Champion said “It’s cool, a nice surprise for everybody. He’s a huge guy for our series, one of our better personalities. It’s unfortunate he went through what he did.”

CASTRONEVES & POWER TO RACE LBGP

Filed under: BUSINESS,IRL — Lynne Huntting @ 4:05 pm

Indy Racing League’s IndyCar driver, HELIO CASTRONEVES is in the air even as we speak flying from Miami FL back to Long Beach after he was acquitted Friday of Federal tax evasion charges. The popular Brazilian racer had been on trial, along with his older sister/business manager, KATUICIA, and attorney ALAN MILLER. All three had been acquitted of their respective tax evasion charges, and the jury hung on the conspiracy charges against the Castroneves siblings and acquitted Miller on his conspiracy charge.

IRL and Team Penske held a hastily-called press conference Friday afternoon, following two other major driver/team announcements, with Team Penske president TIM CINDRIC: IRL president of competition and racing operations, BRIAN BARNHART, and Team Penske drivers RYAN BRISCOE and WILL POWER, who left after the conference for Friday afternoon practice. Power was fastest and Briscoe was ninth in the session, and the media joked with Power that it was his audition for a full time Penske ride.

Cindric would not comment on the trial or any possibility of a retrial on the conspiracy charges. “I’m a racing guy. That’s technicalities and that’s for someone else at another time.”

Castroneves, who has raced for Team Penske the past ten years, has not been in a race car since last October. His FIA racing license was renewed by ACCUS and he’s good to go. NICK CRAW, President of ACCUS, said it is a full service operation, 24/7. IRL already had Castroneves’ medical, ACCUS had the paperwork, and the license was ready to issue.

Cindric said that Castroneves will sleep better Friday night than previous nights. He’s got energy. Because of the uncertainty of the days’ events, Cindric didn’t know when Castroneves would be available for comment. Cindric hadn’t personally spoken with him since the verdict, but they had exchanged text messages. Cindric said “We’re ready” and Castroneves said “I’m coming.”

Cindric spoke to the logistics of returning Castroneves to Long Beach from the trial. “It’s still work in progress in getting him back. Roger’s resources are beneficial in situations like this. If anyone could get Air Force One, it would be Roger. The basics are – Roger dispatched a plane from Detroit for whenever Helio will be ready. He’ll be here this evening in one of Roger’s planes.”

As promised, Team Owner, ROGER PENSKE, will have a race car for Castroneves. Saturday he will be in No.3 with a full set of Firestone tires – six primarys (blacks) and three alternatives (reds). Castroneves will race No.3 this weekend and going forward. Barnhart said IRL would grant concessions to Team Penske for Saturday morning practice. Castroneves will be allowed to drive in both groups.

Power will finish Friday in No.3. Saturday he will switch to a third Team Penske race car, No.12 with Verizon Wireless sponsorship, taking with him the tires assigned to him. His pit space will be at Pit Entry. Power will be allowed extra practice time Saturday morning in No.12.  His race strategist will be JOHN ERICKSON, from Team Penske’s sports car team.

Power has been filling in for the absent Castroneves, starting with the pre-season testing and the season’s opener race at St. Petersburg, where he started and finished sixth, in No.3. Power drove No.3 in the Friday morning session, finishing fourth overall in a field of 22 drivers.

Power will also race No.12 with Verizon sponsorship in the Indianapolis 500. He only learned of his Indy 500 ride last night, according to Cindric.

Penske is currently in Phoenix with his NASCAR Nationwide Series team. He will fly to Long Beach after Friday night’s race and spend Saturday with the IndyCar team, before flying back to Phoenix for the NASCAR Sprint Cup race. Then, Saturday night Penske will be back on the plane to Long Beach.

Cindric said the team has been dealing with various contingency plans for Helio since before the St. Pete race. “Everything looked like a decision was coming, and we had to have a contingency and reward Will for all he has done, but Helio’s best medicine is to be back in the race car.

“If I didn’t know him that well, I’d question is this the right move. His focus and concentration is among the best, the trust I have in him at Indianapolis. I put him up against the best of them for being mentally prepared.”

Because of the uncertainty of the times, Cindric couldn’t say what other driving opportunities might be available for Power and Team Penske. The only oval race between Long Beach and Indy is Kansas, and at this point Cindric said there were no plans for Power to run that race. “But with us you never know. as we sit here today. always subject to change. This time last year at this time we were focusing on Helio’s dancing, and this year we were focusing on Helio’s trial. I hope next year at this time there’s something more positive on which to focus.”

“We haven’t run three cars for quite awhile. It’s been a bit of a mixed bag and a moving yardstick for us. I’ve heard nothing but support for Helio. I can’t say enough about Will and the task he’s had with all the maybes and what abouts. I don’t want to speculate on what will happen with Will.”

Cindric wasn’t sure about further Verizon sponsorship. “Our plate if pretty full right now going forward. Lots can happen between now and May. We’re playing it a race at a time and focusing on May. Look at Will – our position is that if he was going to run for us, it’s an opportunity for the team to get to work with the guy and the growing pains before we get into May. This year is a short schedule the first week. It is a big advantage for all of us preparing for a third car at Indy.”

COMMENTS:
Cindric said “We’re ecstatic about the outcome. It’s been a very difficult time for all of us, especially Helio and his family. It’s good to know he can go on with his life, business as usual. His usual business is different. I’m looking forward to having him back as a driver in our organization.”

Barnhart said “We couldn’t be happier for Team Penske, Helio Castroneves and his family and look forward to having him back on the race grid at Long Beach. Helio has played an integral part in the growth of the IndyCar Series on and off the race track the past few years and has an incredible legion of fans. He is a true star in every sense of the word and his infectious personality, popularity and success on the race track is welcomed back.” Barnhart joked about looking forward to the driver’s meeting and all Helio’s special questions will begin again

Briscoe said “I’m looking forward to having him back and excited to continue that going forward. Will is in similar shoes as I was couple years ago. Will impressed us all. I’m happy for Helio.”

Power said “I’m very happy for Helio and his family. I can’t imagine what it might be alike. I’m excited to be driving the 12 car and in the Indy 500. The team has made me feel welcome. It’s a  first class team, and I loved working with these guys.”

“I knew the situation and none of this is a surprise, they keep me well informed. I appreciate the way it’s all played out.”

SCOTT DIXON/No.9 Target Chip Ganassi Racing, 2008 IndyCar Champion said “It’s cool, a nice surprise for everybody. He’s a huge guy for our series, one of our better personalities. It’s unfortunate he went through what he did.”

HELIO ACQUITTED

Filed under: BUSINESS,IRL — Lynne Huntting @ 12:27 pm

IndyCar driver, HELIO CASTRONEVES, was acquitted Friday on the six counts of tax evasion, with a hung jury on the conspiracy charge. His sister, Katuicia, was also acquitted of the tax evasion charges, with the jury hung on her conspiracy charge. Attorney ALAN MILLER was acquitted on three charges of tax evasion and one of conspiracy. The federal court case lasted more than a month in Miami FL.

The word in the IRL paddock is that a black IndyCar and crew are awaiting the arrival of Castroneves, to race this weekend at the 35th Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach.

Stay tuned.

FRANCHITTI, PHILIPPE, AND DE FERRAN FASTEST FRIDAY AM

Filed under: A1 GP,ALMS,IRL — Lynne Huntting @ 11:57 am

Warm and sunny bright is the order of the day for the first official day of the 35th Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach. Blocks away from the track one could hear the Indy Racing League’s Firestone Indy Lights Series take to the track at 8 am PDT. All six race groups practice and/or qualify Friday.

The first half hour of the 90-minute Indy Racing League IndyCar session was limited to ten drivers, Rookies and those outside the top ten in points. ROBERT DOORNBOS/No.06 Newman Haas Lanigan Racing was fastest in that group.

DARIO FRANCHITTI/No.10 Target Chip Ganassi Racing was the top IndyCar driver Friday morning at 1:11.1915. He spent much of the session in that position. Franchitti, who is sporting long curly locks this season, has a bet with pal TONY KANAAN/No.7 Andretti Green Racing, who has a closely shaved head. Whomever wins first dictates the others hair style. Kanaan is game to take clippers to Franchitti’s hair, and the other side of the bet is that Kanaan will let his hair grow. This weekend marks the 100th race for Kanaan in indy cars.

Second through fifth were RYAN BRISCOE/No.6 Team Penske., MARIO MORAES/No.5 KV Racing Technology, WILL POWER/No.3 Team Penske, and GRAHAM RAHAL/No.02 Newman Haas Lanigan Racing.

Top Rookie was ROBERT DOORNBOS/No.06 Newman Haas Lanigan Racing in sixth place. After racing Formula One and Champ Car in 2007, it’s hard to think of Doornbos as being a rookie, but IRL considers former CCWS drivers as Rookies due to lack of oval track experience.

This will be the second race at Long Beach for Doornbos – he ran the 2007 Champ Car race, and likes street circuits.

Doornbos won the A1 GP Sprint race in Portugal last weekend, racing for Team Netherlands. However, he suffered an electrical problem on the first lap of the Feature race and retired on the spot. Something shorted out from the in-car camera wiring. Team Netherlands is one of the top four countries in the series, along with Ireland, Switzerland and Portugal, and Doornbos said the series is attracting strong drivers. “I agreed to three races for A1GP Team Netherlands but racing conflicts prevent me from any more this season. I enjoyed it and did well – one victory, two poles, three podiums and six starts on the front row. People love it when you win for your country.”

Doornbos said “It’s not that different driving an IndyCar and an A1GP car. I know how to drive open wheelers, with experience in several series including F1. However, the IndyCar is far more comfortable. The A1 car has a more cramped cockpit. The A1 car has mega downforce and lots of grip. The IndyCar has less grip than the Champ Cars. The car is all over the place and it’s hard work to drive.”

Firestone Light’s RICHARD PHILIPPE/No.36 Genoa Racing, JONATHAN SUMMERTON/No.9 RLR/Andersen Racing, SEBASTIAN SAAVEDRA/No.27 AFS Racing, JAMES DAVISON/No.21 Vision Racing, and JR HILDEBRAND/No.26 AFS Racing were the top five in the early morning practice. There were some spins, minor mechanicals and two visits into the tire walls, but no one was hurt and cars not severely damaged. All 25 were on track, and the top three are Rookies.

GIL de FERRAN/No.66 de Ferran Motorsports Acura LMP1 topped the ALMS morning practice session. The top drivers in the other classes were: LMP2-ADRIAN FERNANDEZ/No.15 Lowe’s Fernandez Racing Acura; GT1-OLIVER GAVIN/No.4 Corvette Racing Chevy Corvette; and GT2 WOLF HENZLER/No.87 Farnbacher Loles

ALMS qualifies Friday afternoon for Saturday’s afternoon ‘sprint’ race.

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