ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Bryan Herta will go into the record book as the driver who made the first official right turn in IndyCar Series history. Dan Wheldon has the distinction of being the inaugural winner of the Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg.
Andretti Green Racing will be recognized for a dominating performance on this historic day.
Herta - after winning his second consecutive Marlboro Pole Award - certainly would have switched places with the new IndyCar Series points leader. But an Andretti Green Racing sweep of the top four spots - an IndyCar Series first - eased any disappointment.
“It was a great result for the team,” Herta said. “For me, it was kind of great.”
Wheldon, who passed Tony Kanaan and Target Chip Ganassi Racing rookie Ryan Briscoe for the lead on Lap 91, held off his teammate to claim his second IndyCar Series victory of the season and fifth of his career. Dario Franchitti was third and Herta fourth. Rahal Letterman Racing’s Vitor Meira rounded out the top five.
"It is unbelievable," said team co-owner Michael Andretti, who earlier in the day celebrated his 18-year-old son’s victory in the Menards Infiniti Pro Series Grand Prix of St. Petersburg in his series debut. "I'm so proud of everyone. I'm so happy to be here and can't wait to come back next year."
The team party was joined in progress by fans still buzzing about the post-race concert by Grammy Award-winning Good Charlotte, the festive atmosphere surrounding the event, and the final 10 laps of a typical highly competitive IndyCar Series race.
It’s fantastic for Andretti Green Racing to get a 1-2-3-4,” said Wheldon, who was runner-up to Kanaan in the 2004 standings. “It was difficult as it is any time you have TK breathing down your neck, so I’ve got to give myself a pat on the back.”
The 2003 Bombardier Rookie of the Year also should give one to Kanaan for allowing him to inherit the lead.
Briscoe, a 23-year-old Australian, was seemingly on the way to adding to the day of history with his first IndyCar Series victory. But on the restart after a full-course caution for a Lap 87 entanglement of Sam Hornish Jr.’s and Tomas Enge’s cars in Turn 4, Kanaan was right on Briscoe’s rear wing.
Kanaan feinted inside and then outside as the two made their way through the series of turns at the rear of the track. He darted to the inside of Briscoe as they went into Turn 10 and the cars touched. Kanaan’s No. 11 Team 7-Eleven Dallara/Honda/Firestone slowed and Briscoe’s No. 33 Target Chip Ganassi Racing’s Panoz/Toyota/Firestone careened into the outside tire barrier.
Wheldon, driving the No. 26 Klein Tools/Jim Beam Dallara/Honda/Firestone, didn’t hesitate to take the position.
"Even after I got into the lead, I knew TK was there," said Wheldon, who celebrated with his customary doughnuts and by hugging his teammates on pit road. "You know he's going to try to do anything he can. But, somehow, I stayed in front."
Kanaan, who has completed every lap of every race since the start of the 2004 season and recorded his 18th consecutive top-5 finish, was upset with Briscoe.
"In fairness, when people are not fair, they get what they deserve,'' he said. "He tried to put me in the wall. You want to play hard, we'll play hard. Dan was one lucky guy. But to win in racing, you've got to be lucky.''
Briscoe, a former Formula One test driver, led a race-high 43 laps but finished 14th.
“We had a truly amazing race where the Target team did absolutely everything right,” Briscoe said. “For it to end this way is very disappointing. In the drivers’ meeting, we were told by (Indy Racing League president) Brian Barnhart that if you make a move to pass, you have to do it before the apex. Coming off Turn 9 and into the kink, I honestly made sure to brake late, but I took a look and Kanaan wasn’t there.
“I was very surprised by the move because that was a risky passing zone, and he simply threw his car into the turn. And you can see the result.”
Just another day in the ultra-competitive IndyCar Series.
Under Racing Grand Am
Pruett & Diaz Take Closest Victory in Rolex Series History at Ferrari Maserati 400
FONTANA, Calif. (April 3, 2005) -- Defending Grand American Rolex Sports Car Series Daytona Prototype co-champion Scott Pruett held off current Daytona Prototype co-points leader Max Angelelli by a series-record 0.096 seconds to take his first victory of the 2005 season in the Ferrari Maserati 400 at California Speedway.
Driving the No. 01 CompUSA Chip Ganassi Racing Lexus Riley, Pruett claimed the lead from Michael Valiante when the Canadian pitted for fuel, tires and to hand the No. 19 Ten Motorsports BMW Riley over to co-driver Michael McDowell on Lap 65 of the 86-lap race. Pruett's ascension to the lead was remarkable as his No. 01 co-driver Luis Diaz encountered a power steering failure as he approached the green flag while starting from his first career pole position.
"I was a little bit nervous so I decided to be safe with the car, until we knew a little bit more about the problem," Diaz said. "With the problems with the car, I decided to run a good pace and to bring the car to Scott in good shape, not risking too much in the first part of the race. I think that paid off."
Despite the difficulties, Pruett had the advantage as the race neared its conclusion. Pruett's car had plenty of fuel, while it wasn't entirely clear whether or not Angelelli's No. 10 SunTrust Racing Pontiac Riley--that was driven in the first stint by car owner Wayne Taylor--could make it to the end without another stop. Angelelli's big break came on Lap 74, when Justin Pruskowski brought out the day's final full-course yellow in the No. 5 Essex Racing Ford Crawford after spinning and stalling in Turn 10.
The two-lap caution period was enough to remove any doubts for Angelelli and set the table for an intense, 10-lap dash to the checkers. On the Lap 76 restart, Angelelli made quick work of the lapped cars between himself and Pruett, and closed-in, looking for his third-straight Rolex Series win. As they took the white flag, Pruett led Angelelli across the line by a half-second. However, as he approached the 21st and final turn on the 2.82-mile road circuit, Pruett was momentarily delayed by the No. 22 BMW GT car of Ian James, allowing Angelelli to get one final run.
Both Daytona Prototypes pulled back onto the oval portion of the Speedway, with Pruett on the bottom of the track, the BMW in the middle, and Angelelli rocketing around the outside. The Italian's run came up just short and Pruett hung on for his first victory of the 2005 Rolex Series season. The margin of victory eclipsed the previous best of 0.870 seconds by Angelelli over Pruett at Virginia International Raceway last year.
"It was a great day for the whole team," Pruett said. "All the Ganassi guys, CompUSA, Lexus and Luis (Diaz) did a fabulous job. I'm a little disappointed though. He brought the car in all tore up; there was a pylon stuck in the windshield, the power steering wasn't working and he just said 'Here Scott, there you go, it was perfect for me.' It'd be nice though, like I was joking before the race, to get this mechanical monkey off our back. Unfortunately we haven't but victory is ever so sweet. They tried to take victory away from us and we took it back. I'm pleased with the whole operation and all the guys just dug deep today."
It was Pruett's fifth career Rolex Series victory, but was his first since he and co-driver Max Papis wrapped up the Daytona Prototype title at California Speedway last year. Diaz, on the other hand, celebrated his first-ever Rolex Series triumph, topping previous best Rolex Series finishes of third in the six-hour event at Watkins Glen and at Mid-Ohio last year.
"It feels great," Diaz said. "Especially with these types of drivers at this level, it feels awesome. We need to keep working to catch these guys (Taylor and Angelelli) in the championship. They are very strong so we have to keep working. Hopefully we are going to have good breaks."
After winning the Rolex 24 At Daytona and the Grand Prix of Miami to open the 2005 season, Angelelli and Taylor came up just short in their bid to join Didier Theys as the only drivers to win the first three races of a Rolex Series season. Nevertheless, it was their third straight podium finish and enabled them to extend their lead in the Daytona Prototype championship standings. After coming into the race six points ahead of No. 4 The Boss Snowplow Pontiac Crawford co-drivers Butch Leitzinger and Elliott Forbes-Robinson of Howard-Boss Motorsports, they now lead Pruett and Diaz by 17 points (102-85).
"We came here and obviously everyone was saying can you do this three-in-a-row, so that was in the back of our mind," Taylor said. "Also, we're thinking about the championship. We were probably watching out for Butch Leitzinger and Elliott (Forbes-Robinson). Along the way, Scott and Luis (Diaz) came because at one point they seemed to be out of the frame. The other thing is there are 12 or 13 cars at any point that can win these races. I remember at one point in the race, three out of the top four cars were BMW powered. I think those guys in No. 19, when they get their strategy straightened out; we're going to have a tough time. As everybody said, it's really good cars, really good drivers and really good teams. It's going to be tough."
The second-place run marked Angelelli's 10th consecutive top-four result and was his ninth podium in his past 10 starts dating to last season. Taylor and Angelelli have been involved in the three closest finishes in Rolex Series history, as they also won the Grand Prix of Miami by 1.198 seconds over Leitzinger and Forbes-Robinson, which now ranks as the third-closest finish.
"I think I was pretty lucky because of the traffic," Angelelli said. "He (Pruett) got stuck so I could gain a little bit, but we were so equal. I think he had just a little bit more than me, so it was really difficult for me to close the gap unless I had some help from the traffic. Because he passed me in the pits, I think that cost us a lot of the race. It's not because of my mechanics, it's because I asked for adjustments on the car. It's pretty tough and I am quite pleased for second place in thinking about the championship and the points."
Filling out the podium with an outstanding performance were No. 6 Mears Motor Coach Pontiac Riley co-drivers Mike Borkowski--who started third in the race--and Paul Mears Jr. for Michael Shank Racing. It was Mears' best-ever finish in Rolex Series competition, besting a seventh-place run at VIR in 2003, while it was Borkowski's best run since taking third in the 2003 season finale at Daytona International Speedway.
"The Michael Shank Racing guys did an outstanding job all weekend--this is my favorite group of guys that I have ever worked with in racing," said Borkowski. "My pit stop was a bit earlier than the (No.) 01 car and the (No.) 10 car, so my tires had more laps on them at the end and I wasn't able to fight with them. I had to really work hard to keep (Andy) Wallace behind me. It was basically like a fist fight in the closing laps. I'm really pleased with the car we had during the race, and am really excited to be up here on the podium with Paul and the whole team."
"This was a tough weekend for me," Mears said. "I was a bit sick earlier in the weekend and wasn't even sure that I was going to drive. I only ran about 45 minutes of the race, but I was able to keep the car on the lead lap and let Mike make up the deficit I left him. I can't say enough about what a great job (team owner) Mike Shank and his guys did this weekend. We had some problems with the car earlier in the weekend, and they got everything sorted no problem, so my hat's off to them, and to the outstanding job that Borkowski did to come all the way up the order and get us on the podium."
Andy Wallace and Milka Duno charged from 21st on the starting grid to finish fourth in the No. 2 CITGO Howard-Boss Motorsports Pontiac Crawford. It was Wallace's second top-four result in three starts this season. Tracy Krohn and Nic Jönsson completed the top-five finishers in the No. 67 Krohn Racing/TRG Pontiac Riley for their second-straight top-five finish after a fourth-place showing last month in Miami.
The Ferrari Maserati 400 featured six lead changes among six different drivers. Among the leaders were Valiante, Fabrizio Gollin in the No. 77 Crown Royal Special Reserve Doran Racing Lexus Doran, Jörg Bergmeister in the No. 66 Krohn Racing/TRG Pontiac Riley and Shane Lewis in the No. 3 PAP-Parts/OZEXE BMW Riley for Southard Motorsports, each of whom led for the first time in their Daytona Prototype careers. The combined margin of victory for the last two Rolex Series races (the Ferrari Maserati 400 and the Grand Prix of Miami) is 1.294 seconds.
Under racing American Le Mans
TEAM ADT CHAMPION RACING SCORES FIRST VICTORY AT MOBIL 1 TWELVE HOURS OF SEBRING RACE
Sebring, Fla. - Team ADT Champion Racing led, dominated and succeeded in winning one of the most prestigious sports car races in the world, the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring. The "privateer" team from Pompano Beach, Fla., has been second the last three years and was 3rd in 2001, its inaugural year.
This year the team commanded the win from start to finish and in doing so continued the winning streak for the Audi R8 at Sebring. This dominating win by Team ADT Champion Racing marks the sixth consecutive victory for the Audi R8 at Sebring as well as the closest racing finish in the history of the 53-year old race with a 6.365 second finish between the 1st and 2nd place cars.
"I'm very proud of the whole team, the drivers, the crew, even the caterers," said Dave Maraj, Owner of Champion Racing. "The cars are unbelievable. Even if they are six years old they are still unbelievable. Thank you Audi."
Pole sitter JJ Lehto led the field of 39 cars today at the season opener of the 10-race American Le Mans Series. When the green flag was dropped at 10:45 a.m., both Audi R8 cars charged into Turn 1 with Pirro edging out Lehto for the lead. Pirro held the lead until he had contact with a slower car, not once but twice during his first stint. "It was an eventful first stint as a lot of things happened," commented Pirro. "I got two black flags which honestly, I did not deserve, especially the first time. The guy was very wide and really left me a lot of room and then for some reason he shut the door on me. He was off-line and therefore you have to go for it." Pirro was black flagged and served a "stop and go" penalty for each instance.
Throughout the 12-hour race the Audi R8s performed flawlessly leaving it up to the drivers and pit crews to decide who would be victorious. Hour after hour the two teams jockeyed for position often pitting at the same time. "I think this is indicative of how the season will go," said Rod Bymaster, Manager Audi Sport North America. "Those two cars are going to go at each other for 10 races and it's going to be a real interesting season from that perspective because the drivers in both cars are extremely competitive and they are going to want to win."
In the last 11/2 hours of the race, the Audis were a scant 6 seconds to 24 seconds apart. Again, any changes in order were either going to be determined by the driver or the pit stop. Both teams performed their pit stops well and the order remained the same. Tom Kristensen with teammates JJ Lehto and Marco Werner would cross the finish line just seconds ahead of the sister car. Dave Maraj and Team ADT Champion Racing finally achieved the coveted top tier of the podium. The second round of the American Le Mans Series takes place April 15-17 at Road Atlanta in Braselton, Ga. The two-hour, 45-minute timed race will be televised live by CBS Sports. The American Le Mans Series Radio Web also will supply flag to flag coverage.
