Backstretch Motorsports

Large rookie class headed to Indianapolis
Sherman gets bonus test with Panther Racing
Viso will start month with Mini-Marathon

1. Large rookie class headed to Indianapolis: Only eight rookies have ever won the Indianapolis 500 - and that includes Ray Harroun, who won the inaugural race in 1911. This year, 13 rookies, the most since 1997, will attempt to add their name to the list that includes Graham Hill, Juan Pablo Montoya and Helio Castroneves.

The rookie class for the 92nd Indianapolis 500 will take its first laps around the 2.5-mile speedway May 4-5 when they must complete the Rookie Orientation Program, a set of four phases of 10 laps each at increasing speeds.

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“There’s no reason for anybody to gloat or to feel down because, in the end, we’ve all come together.” Tony George, Feb-22-2008

So for your trivia books, Will Power (pictured above) takes victory in the last-ever Champ Car World Series race. The final Champ Car World Series race happened today on the Streets of Long Beach course. The final remnants of the most bitter spilt in modern auto racing history come to an official end.

Power brings 53 points toward the championship in the unified IndyCar Series. He ranks fifth in the standings heading into the Road Runner Turbo Indy 300 at Kansas Speedway on April 27.

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MOTEGI, Japan, Friday, April 18, 2008 - Helio Castroneves didn’t have to do anything to earn the pole for the Indy Japan 300. That was taken care of during the first two IndyCar Series races of the season.

Castroneves will lead the field to the green flag at the 1.5-mile Twin Ring Motegi oval after IndyCar Series officials based the starting grid on entrant points when qualifications for the PEAK Motor Oil Pole Award were rained out.

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He missed the last race, the first of the new season. He crashed his primary car at a test. So his IndyCar Series debut had to wait until the street course at St Petersburg.

And did he ever make up for it.

Graham Rahal becomes not only the youngest driver to win a IndyCar Series race (19 years and 93 days old.), he becomes the first of the transition drivers to do so. He held off defending race champion Helio Castroneves.

It was a good day for the Newman/Haas/Lanagan driver to say the least.

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AGR’s Tony Kanaan Takes P1 for First Street Course of ‘08

You want drama, you’ve got it. The IndyCar Series day of “Knock-Out Qualifying” at the Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg provided.

After survivng the unfamiliar oval setting of the Homestead-Miami opener, the street course at St. Pete certainly made a huge difference for the former CCWS transition teams. The comfort zone of twisting turns provided a equalizing atmosphere for the new guys.

Will Power, Team Australia sponsored KV Racing Technologies Honda/Dallara/Firestone driver turned the fastest lap of the IndyCar weekend with a time of 1:02.1355 at a speed of 104.288

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Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg Fast Facts

Castroneves eyes three-peat as IndyCar Series returns to St. Petersburg
Firestone Indy Lights teams ready to tackle doubleheader weekend
Transition Teams find more familiar turf on street course.

Castroneves hopes to dance in Victory Lane
Helio Castroneves, the winner of the past two races at St. Petersburg and the winner of ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars” last November, hopes to return to Victory Lane for a third consecutive season. The affable South Florida resident has led 135 laps at St. Petersburg the last two seasons. Only two drivers have ever won three consecutive races at the same track. Dan Wheldon won three in a row at Homestead-Miami Speedway (2005-07), and Scott Dixon has captured three in a row at Watkins Glen (2005-07). Castroneves finished fourth in the season opener at Homestead-Miami.

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The new era of American open-wheel racing started with a bang with last night’s GAINSCO Indy 300. New Zealander Scott Dixon picked up right where he left off last year by notching another season’s first event win on his already impressive IndyCar Series resume. It is Dixon’s second victory on the 1.5 mile Homestead-Miami oval.

It wasn’t a cakewalk for the Target Chip Ganassi pilot with a continuation of last year’s battles swapping turns at the point with Andretti Green Racing’s Tony Kanaan from the drop of the green flag.

“Yeah, today was a tough race.” said Dixon, “I think early on we thought we had a pretty good car. We opted to go a little lighter on downforce than some of the others on the grid. In those longer stints, it started to hurt us. We couldn’t keep the car on the bottom or the middle, to be honest. I tried running high where the other guys were. I couldn’t keep the car down, especially in (Turns) 3 and 4. (Turns) 1 and 2, I didn’t have a problem.”

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Scott Dixon wins his ninth career PEAK Motor Oil Pole Award. His last pole came at Twin Ring Motegi in 2007. It his first career pole at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
This is Target Chip Ganassi Racing’s 16th pole in the IndyCar Series and the team’s second consecutive pole at Homestead-Miami.
Ed Carpenter qualified a career-best second. His previous best was fourth at Michigan International Speedway in 2006.
A.J. Foyt IV qualified a career-best third. His previous best was sixth at Chicagoland Speedway in 2005.
Marty Roth qualified a career-best 10th. His previous best start was 17th at Homestead-Miami in 2007 and Michigan in 2006.
Hideki Mutoh was the top-qualfying rookie at a career-best ninth. He qualified 13th in his IndyCar Series debut last September at Chicago.
Franck Perera was the highest-qualifying driver among those transitioning to the IndyCar Series. He will start 15th.

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Today’s IndyCar Series and Indy Pro Series headlines

In Case You Missed It: Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing, KV Racing Technology teleconference
HVM Racing confirms IndyCar Series participation for 2008
Season Preview: Rahal Letterman Racing
Conquest Racing enters technical partnership with Forsythe Performance Research

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Team pairings provide guidance, expertise under unification

INDIANAPOLIS, Thursday, March 6, 2008 - The clock is ticking for teams preparing for the 2008 IndyCar Series season that begins on March 29 under the lights at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

No teams are feeling the deadline as much as the teams from the Champ Car World Series that will be joining the IndyCar Series following the recent announcement of unification. To facilitate a smooth transition, the IndyCar Series has paired existing teams with the former Champ Car World Series teams to provide technical and logistical support.

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