The cars haven?t used carburetors in over 40 years, however, final Indy 500 practice still retains the nostalgic term, ?Carb Day.? Andretti-Green Racing swept the top-three spots in final practice for the 91st running of the Indianapolis 500. Tony Kanaan grabbed top spot with a lap of 225.467 mph. Dario Franchitti was second fastest at 223.807 mph and Michael Andretti was third at 223.575 mph. Polesitter/fast qualifier Helio Castroneves was fourth at 223.527 mph. Surprising Jaques Lazier was fifth at 223.468 mph.
A low-key Kanaan commented after practice, “When you’re the fastest guy on the track, you can’t say that your car isn’t that good, but I got a good draft. I was trying to run in traffic as much as I could. I’m happy because I think the balance of the Team 7-Eleven car is what I want it to be. It was a good day, but Carb Day doesn’t mean anything. No one will remember it on Race Day.”
Andretti remained upbeat, “Things are pretty good for the Motorola/Jim Beam team. We still feel like we’ve got a good race car and feel like we have a good starting point for how we need to be on Sunday.”
Polesitter Castroneves is ready to go, “It was good to finally get back in the car today. Thankfully we’re pretty much where we left off last week in terms of car set-up, so we didn’t have to do anything drastic. The Team Penske car isn’t the fastest in the field, but what we need in this race is a solid setup, and I feel we have that. With the draft, you don’t have to be the quickest because the faster cars will drag you along. We enter this race each year with the same goal, to be around at the end so we’re in contention for the win, and I really believe we will be there. The last week has been entirely too long – I’m ready to go racing.”
Some drivers weren?t happy with their progress but remained positive. An example was Target-Chip Ganassi Racing driver Scott Dixon, “We tried a few different things to make sure we were in the right ballpark. They were all worse, so I guess that’s a good thing. We were just trying to run in traffic to make sure the car is good in those situations. All of it went pretty well. It is hard to tell what speeds are true speeds, and who had less wing, so we just worked on being comfortable in traffic.” (About weather changing the first stint on Sunday): “The problem with changing your setup is that this race is so long. The track rubbers up and keeps getting faster. You don’t want to have too much down force, because you need to be able to race the last 20 laps. Last year, our car was strong, but we had too much wing to be able to go for the win. This year, we may go a little more aggressive and run a little less wing for the first four or five stints.”
The 91st Indianapolis 500 will be televised Sunday, May 27 to more than 200 countries and more than 442 million households worldwide through ESPN and its international distribution efforts. The 91st Indianapolis 500 will be televised Sunday, May 27 to more than 200 countries and more than 442 million households worldwide through ESPN and its international distribution efforts. ESPN, the exclusive worldwide television representative of the IndyCar Series and the Indianapolis 500, ESPN, the exclusive worldwide television representative of the IndyCar Series and the Indianapolis 500, will televise the Indianapolis 500 live to 166 countries and territories outside the United States.
“Carb Day” Top Practice Speeds 1. (11) Tony Kanaan, Dallara-Honda, 225.467 2. (27) Dario Franchitti, Dallara-Honda, 223.807 3. (39) Michael Andretti, Dallara-Honda, 223.575 4. (3) Helio Castroneves, Dallara-Honda, 223.527 5. (21) Jaques Lazier, Panoz-Honda, 223.468 6. (9) Scott Dixon, Dallara-Honda, 223.374 7. (6) Sam Hornish Jr., Dallara-Honda, 222.981 8. (7) Danica Patrick, Dallara-Honda, 222.862 9. (12) Ryan Briscoe, Dallara-Honda, 222.754 10. (2) Tomas Scheckter, Dallara-Honda, 222.693 11. (26) Marco Andretti, Dallara-Honda, 222.690 12. (14) Darren Manning, Dallara-Honda, 222.396 13. (10) Dan Wheldon, Dallara-Honda, 222.199 14. (17) Jeff Simmons, Dallara-Honda, 222.064 15. (55) Kosuke Matsuura, Dallara-Honda, 221.658 16. (20) Ed Carpenter, Dallara-Honda, 221.632 17. (15) Buddy Rice, Dallara-Honda, 221.161 18. (4) Vitor Meira, Dallara-Honda, 220.797 19. (02) Davey Hamilton, Dallara-Honda, 220.669 20. (8) Scott Sharp, Dallara-Honda, 220.131 21. (98) Alex Barron, Dallara-Honda, 220.084 22. (33) John Andretti, Dallara-Honda, 220.049 23. (22) A.J. Foyt IV, Dallara-Honda, 219.920 24. (24) Roger Yasukawa, Dallara-Honda, 219.918 25. (19) Jon Herb, Dallara-Honda, 219.781 26. (91) Richie Hearn, Dallara-Honda, 219.308 27. (31) Phil Giebler, Panoz-Honda, 219.143 28. (25) Marty Roth, Dallara-Honda, 218.233 29. (5) Sarah Fisher, Dallara-Honda, 218.173 30. (99) Buddy Lazier, Dallara-Honda, 218.149 31. (50) Al Unser Jr., Dallara-Honda, 217.158 32. (77) Roberto Moreno, Panoz-Honda, 217.133
33. (23) Milka Duno, Dallara-Honda, 211.658
Steve Zautke, a Milwaukee, WI native, was raised in the sport of auto racing. His father, Bill, was a movie photographer that shot racing footage at tracks such as the Milwaukee Mile and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in the 1960’s and 1970’s Steve’s first professional job in racing was as an Emergency Medical Technician at tracks such as Angell Park and Hales Corners Speedway (1988-1991). Steve has also worked for the Milwaukee Mile as videographer, in media relations and historian (1993-2011). Steve also has worked as a reporter for Racing Information Systems (RIS) and has written features for ‘Vintage Oval Racing’ and ‘Victory Lane’ magazines. Most recently, Steve has written a book on Road America for Arcadia Publishing. ( http://www.amazon.com/Road-America-Nascar-Library-Collection/dp/1467111457 ) Steve co-hosts “Sparky’s Final Inspection” a motorsports-based radio show with hosts, Steve “Sparky” Fifer and “NASCAR Girl” Summer Santana on Sports Radio 1250AM in Milwaukee and is also available on the internet at www.Sportradio1250.com. A member of the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame Induction Committee, Steve follows all types of racing from the dirt tracks to Formula One.
IndyCar SeriesSteve Zautke