Danica Mania

As everyone talks about how great of a driver Danica is, shes also great and attracting new fans. Ever since the Cart- IRL ( the two major indy car series's in the country) spit in 1996, the ratings for the Indy 500 have steadily decreased, but this year was differnt as the whole world caught the "Mania." It hosted a 6.5 rating which was up 59% from 2004. The 6.5 was the highest since 1996. From 3 o'clock central time until about 3:15, ratings sky rocketed. Why? Well that was about the time of the final 15 laps when Dan Wheldon outdualed Danica for the win. The ratings for those 15 minutes was 8.6. The pre-race segment was up 61% of last year. This year the start time of the Indy 500 was pushed back an hour to draw more fans in the West Coast, ABC brought in Brent Musburger to do the pre race, and of course a gorgeous women going 225 mph is also going to help ratings!
http://www.indyracing.com/news/story.php?story_id=4764

Flying Under Radar

It seems all month long at Indianapolis we heard about Danica Patrick, Tony Kanaan or Dan Wheldon. Well that didnt change on race day, with Tony Kanaan winning the pole, Danica leading 19 laps, and of course Dan Wheldon winning the race. But a name that most people have forgotten is Buddy Lazier. Lazier, who won the Indy 500 in 1996, has been without a full time ride since the end of the 2002 season. Buddy won the Indy Car series points championship in 2000 and has 7 career wins, and has finished twice two times at Indy. This year, driving for Panther Racing in the #95 Jiffy Lube, ESPN Radio 980 Jonathon Byrd's Cafeteria Chevy, Buddy qualified 9th, which was the fastest Chevy and the fastest out of the 3 Panther Racing drivers. Buddy crashed his car in practice about 48 hours before the start of the 500 on Carb. Day. His crew worked threw the night to get his car back to racing conditions. The #95 Chevy stayed near the front of the field for most of the day, avoided crashes and pit problems, and sailed to Panthers best finish in the Indy 500, with a 5th place finish. Great effort. I’ve got to hand it to John Barnes, all the team owners here. Panther Racing, there’s five of them (and) all great guys. Andy Brown, my engineer … I knew when I had him as my race engineer and Seth (Fleming) and all the engineers from the other teams. We all worked together, and when I looked at that engineering I knew that we would have a chance to win this race. If you take a look at my front wings, I had contact with Sharp in the last 10 (laps), so I broke the left front wing. We didn’t come in, we didn’t want to lose track position, and then we had contact again with another car blocking me. So without the contacts, I think I would have been able to make a better run of it at the end. Top-five finish, that’s really good. I’m happy with that.” (Chevrolet, you knew they’d want to end here strong. What kind of engine did they give you?): “Well, take a look at those wings, and if we wouldn’t have had those wings like that we would’ve – you can’t say if you’re ever going to win or not – but we would have had a lot better shot of it. I think we would have really charged at the end and had a chance to win, so my hats off to Chevy. They gave me a motor that would have won today.” (After what happened on Friday (accident in Miller Lite Carb Day practice), you have to feel extremely proud of this result): “It’s a testament to my team, Panther Racing, a testament to my race engineer, Andy Brown, testament to Seth, the guys on this race car. All these guys worked together all night for two nights to that car back together.” (This is obviously a partnership that works – you and Panther Racing. Is this the end of it?): “We keep working on it. Certainly my agenda is to be back full-time IndyCar racing, and hopefully this will help. I don’t know. We’ll just keep working at it.” Lazier said after the race.
http://www.pantherracing.com/content/blogcategory/28/80/

Big time publicity are what the two most famous drivers of this years 500 aer recieving, Danica Patrick and Dan Wheldon. Patrick, the 2005 Rookie of the Year, is on this weeks cover of Sports Illustrated, and has been on numorous TV shows and news programs. It seems everyday there is a story about Danica in the news paper. For the champion, Dan Wheldon has been everywhere, Monday morning, the winners photo shoot at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Then a taping for Live with Regis and Kelly, interviews on CNN, Then to Shea Stadium to throw out the first pitch at the Mets vs. Diamondbacks game, then up to Connecticut to tape a segment of SportsCenter's "Fact or Fiction". He has also done interviews and promos to advertise the rest of the summer for the Indy Racing League. The 2005 Indy 500, will reair tonight on ESPN Classic at 8.
http://indy500.com/news/story.php?story_id=4760
http://www.indycar.com/news/story.php?story_id=4753

Check Please

In 1989, Emerson Fittapaldi won his first Indy 500, he earned a little over a million dollars for his win, which was the first year the winner would recieve over a million dollars. This year, the champion, Dan Wheldon received a check for $1,537,805. So whoever thinks its just about going in circles, well going in circles has never had a higher reward. The 500's purse, which is all the total money awarded to all 33 drivers was $10,304,815. Second place driver Vitor Meira, collected $656,955, third place Bryan Herta won $457,505, and the fourth place driver, Danica Patrick earned $378,855, added into that was a check for $25,000 for being the Bank One Rookie of the Year.
http://indyracing.com/news/story.php?story_id=4741

Buddy Back for Texas

The 2004 Indy 500 champion and Danica Patrick's teammate Buddy Rice was cleared to drive for the Lear Jet 500 in Texas on Saturday June 11. Rice, was injured in a practice crash on the second day of practice at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and was not cleared to run the Indy 500. Kenny Brack took his spot in the 500, and there has not been any word on whether not Kenny Brack will have a ride the rest of the year.
http://indyracing.com/news/story.php?story_id=4756

Why Milk?

Why Milk?

For the past 70 years or so, every driver who has won the Indy 500, has pulled into victory lane, and took the traditional sip of milk, every driver except for Emerson Fittapaldi, who won in 1989 and 1993, who drank Orange Juice because he was from Brazil. But why milk? Louie Meyer started the tradition in 1936, when he was photographed gulping down a bottle of buttermilk, which was his favorite drink. He said he drank milk because his mother had recommened the drink saying it would refresh him. Every since 1936, the tradition has stuck and milk has been sipped back at the end of every 500 since. http://indyracing.com/multimedia/search.php?action=view&photo_id=18146&photographer_id=35&series_id=1&date=2005-05-29&track_id=4&pfirst=Michael&plast=Voorhees&series_dir=indycar&track_dir=indy&filename=_W8G0671.jpg&driver=Dan+Wheldon&event_id=26&page=y&p1=96&p2=120&total_results=118&num_pages=5&search=event&search_string=&connector=&search_year=&year=

Indy 500

Job Whel-don

Dan Wheldon was the winner of the 89th Indianapolis 500, the only driver to ever win after starting 15th, Wheldon, the current leader of the IRL Points Standing, swaped the lead 6 different times with Danica Patrick and Vitor Meira over the final 50 laps. Danica, who led 19 laps, overtake Dan Wheldon on a restart with 10 laps to go, and pulled away from Wheldon by half a second, until Wheldon ran her down and took the lead for good on lap 194 of 200. “I made a hell of a point for anybody, are you kidding me?” Danica responded to a question about what she has done for females in auto racing.
Then Patrick, driver of the No. 16 Rahal Letterman Racing Argent Pioneer Panoz/Honda/Firestone, talked about how lousy it was back in 16th place where she found herself after stalling her car during her second pit stop. And she said she learned so much during the race. She never even referred to what her race success achieved in proving a woman can race with some of world’s best male racers without being intimidated.
A second reporter rephrased the question about the historical significance of her Indy performance that was seen worldwide on television.
“I don’t know,” she said. “I’m just racing. I don’t know.
“It sounds so goober stupid, but I just don’t think about it. I just don’t think about it. I don’t know why. I didn’t even think that all the media stuff going on was that – I wasn’t getting overwhelmed. I was getting overwhelmed with the lack of time I had for myself, but all the coverage? I was your story.” Danica said about her run Sunday, but the day belong to the Brit, Dan Wheldon. "But the race itself, I've got to say, is certainly since I've been doing it, was the most competitive. I think it just shows you the direction the series is going with the amount of leaders and the amount of leaders from different teams. Although, you know, it was good to see Andretti Green Racing running one-two-three at one point." "But the race was just difficult because there were so many good cars out there. And the depth of talent was amazing. I thought starting 16th I'd be able to come through perhaps a little quicker than I did. So that soon brought me back down to earth. It was, because people were so close.
But it's just such a proud moment. It's the proudest moment of my life, and I'm sure it will be, to win my first Indianapolis 500. So it was fantastic."
http://indy500.com/news/

Danica Shows What She Can Do

After qualifying for the 500 in the fourth position, she ended up leaving were she started after finishing fourth, but it wasnt a piece of cake. Danica, stalled the car on her second pit stop of the day, sending her back to the 16th position. And she said she learned so much during the race. She never even referred to what her race success achieved in proving a woman can race with some of world’s best male racers without being intimidated. On lap 57, after pitting off sequence, Danica became the first female to ever lead the Indy 500. Then after pitting 100 laps later, Danica was 8th, but under caution, Danica spun the car and took out Tomas Enge and Tomas Scheckter. Danica brought the car into the pits for a new front wing, and got back out onto the track and retook the lead with only 28 laps to go, only to loose the lead 16 laps later to Wheldon during pit stops. On the next restart on lap 189. Danica got by Wheldon to retake the lead, but on lap 194, Danica's fuel was running and low and she had to let off the to save gas, which gave Wheldon the lead and the win. Danica got passed on lap 198 by Vitor Meira and Bryan Herta. The caution came out on lap 199, which gave Danica the fourth spot.

Panther Goes For First Win.

Panther Racing has won almost everything when it comes to the Indy Racing League. 2 Championships with Sam Hornish in 2001 and 2002, 11 Indy Car wins, 8 from Sam Hornish Jr. and 2 with Scott Goodyear, but never has a Panther car won the Indianapolis 500. Could this be year? Well Panther feels its there best shot ever. With three drivers qualified for this years 500, Panther does have the best chance. Tomas Scheckter, who was the 2002 Indy 500 Rookie of the Year, has led more laps at the Indy 500, then any other driver that qualified here. Tomas in the #4 Pennzoil Platinum Chevy will start 11th. Tomas Enge, the rookie, will make his first Indy 500 start and is a possible contender for the Rookie of the year award, Enge, 29, will start his #2 Rock Star Energy Drink Chevy in the 10th spot. Then Panther racing brought in the 3rd driver, the winner of the 1996 Indy 500, Buddy Lazier. Lazier, the 2000 Indy Car Series Champion, has always ran well at Indy with one win and 2 top 5 finishes. He will start 9th in the Jonathon Byrd Cafeteria, Espn Radio #95 Chevy.
www.PantherRacing.com

Yesterday, the Infinity Pro Series took the stage at the Brickyard for qualifying, heres how they will line up for todays race.
http://www.indycar.com/pro/grid.php

Carb Day at Indy, always exciting.
With the new schedule's taking place for this years 500, an hour later start time, new qualifying format, and Carb being pushed from Thursday to Friday, it puts more excitement on Carb Day on that Friday. The events seem to never stop on Carb Day. At 10 a.m. the IRL will take to the track for an hour final practice session for the Indy 500, and now the Futaba Freedom 100, Infinity Pro Series race will be ran on that Friday at noon. Think thats enough? Then following the race, it will be the IRL's pit crews turn to display there talent at the Miller Light Pit Stop Competition, last year Buddy Rice's Argent Mortage team got it down by winning, which that confindence led them to the win in the Indy 500 last year

Danica Has Company from Another Female

All month long you've heard about the new racing hearthrob Danica Patrick. But behind all the newspaper articles and interviews with Danica, theres another female walking around pit road at Indianapolis. Her name is Mishael Abbott. The 24- year old rookie from Missouri is trying to make her way to the Indy 500 through the Menards Infinity Pro Series. Ron Hemelgarn noticed her when Mishael aproached him three years ago in Miami. Mishael's words to her future car owner? “I’m going to drive for you, and I’m going to win the Indy 500.” This year she will become the first female to ever start in the Futaba Freedom 100, then Indy 500 of the Pro Series. T0marrow's Freedom 100 will be her 3rd career Pro Series race, her debut was the season open at Miami, where she qualified fourth and finished eighth. In her second race at Pheonix, Mishael crashed in practice and again in the race, finishing ninth. Mishael graduated from Florida Atlantic University and majored as an elementary school teacher. “I have a dream to be a race car driver,” Mishael said. “Others want to be fire fighters, whatever. You’ve got to follow your dream. Look for Mishael to make her dream come alive at Indy in the near future.
www.MishaelAbbott.com