Indy 500 Fantasy Field
May 22nd, 2008
By Donnie Smith

America has developed a passion for fantasy sports, All Star Games, and Dream Teams. The same can go for racing as well. I decided to put together my dream lineup of drivers that I have seen race.

Criteria/Qualification

1.       Since I was born in 1986, any driver who has won the race from 1986-2007 received an automatic place in the field. With drivers winning multiple races, this ended up including all drivers that have won since 1983. The field also includes drivers that have won well before 1983 due to the length of their driving career.

2.       Laps lead, number of races lead. If a non-winner has lead a significant amount of laps, or has lead during a large number of races, I included them.

3.       Multiple pole awards. If a driver had qualified for the pole position more than once, but had not won, special consideration was given

4.       Likeability/Character. Drivers that are/were “fan friendly” were given consideration.

Starting Order

1.       Drivers which had multiple Indianapolis 500 wins were given the highest spots

2.       Seniority. Drivers with multiple starts were given the next best spots

3.       Success. Points championships, as well as winning in other open wheel series was considered.

Here is my fantasy field of 33.

Row 1

Pole- AJ Foyt, Foyt is one of three four time ‘500’ champions; has also been to Victory Lane as a car owner

Inside- Rick Mears, A four time champion at the Brickyard, Mears lead a total of 429 laps in 15 Indy 500 starts.

Outside- Al Unser Sr., Also a four time winner, Unser qualified for a total of 27 Indy 500’s, and lead 644 laps, the most in history.

Row 2

Inside- Arie Luyendyke, The Dutchman holds track records for fastest lap, fastest qualifying average, and won the fastest Indy 500 in 199 

Middle- Gordon Johncock, Johncock was one of the most dominating drivers in the mid-80s.

Outside- Al Unser Jr., “Little Al” followed in his father’s footsteps and won the 1992, and 1994 races.

Row 3

Inside- Helio Castroneves, in 2002, became the first back to back winner since Al Unser in 1970 & 71.

Middle- Emerson Fitipaldi, “Emo” was a two time winner for Roger Penske.

Outside- Mario Andretti, One of the most recognizable figures at the Speedway, unfortunately, had the same luck as the Chicago Cubs.

Row 4

Inside- Tom Sneva, Another name synonymous with Indy success, was the first driver to turn a lap over 200mph at IMS

Middle- Bobby Rahal, Won in 1986, was the winning car owner in 2004 with Buddy Rice, now will watch his son drive.

Outside- Danny Sullivan, A former New York City cab driver most famous for the “Spin and Win” in 1985.

Row 5

Inside- Juan Pablo Montoya, Montoya owned the 2.5 mile oval in 2000, his only 500 start.

Middle- Jacques Villeneuve, Was penalized two laps in 1995 for passing the pace car, and still won.

Outside- Sam Hornish Jr., A three time points champion lead laps in four of his eight Indy starts.

Row 6

Inside- Dan Wheldon, Wheldon won in 2005, and ranks 26^th all time in laps lead.

Middle- Michael Andretti, Michael is the highest starting non-winner in this field. Andretti has lead 431 laps at Indianapolis, the most of anyone who has never won the race.

Outside- Buddy Lazier, Driving with a fractured back, Lazier was able to hold off Davey Hamilton in 1996 for the win, and inaugural IRL co-points championship.

Row 7

Inside- Eddie Cheever Jr., A very likeable figure, Cheever was able to hold off Buddy Lazier in 1998 for the win.

Middle- Kenny Brack, Brack had a great run in 1998 for AJ Foyt.

Outside- Tony Stewart, Lead laps in all but one of his five Indy starts. Stewart has gone on to a very successful NASCAR career, including two wins at IMS in the Brickyard 400.

Row 8

Inside- Tony Kanaan, Has made six starts, has lead during six races for a total of 202 laps.

Middle- Dario Franchitti, The 2007 champion has also transitioned in to NASCAR.

Outside- Gil de Ferran, Won the 2003 race, and lead laps during three of his four 500 starts.

Row 9

Inside- Buddy Rice, Won a rain shortened race in 2004. Started from the pole.

Middle- Scott Brayton, Was one of the most beloved drivers at Indy; was killed in a crash during practice in 1996 after qualifying for the pole.

Outside- Scott Goodyear, Lost in the closest 500 finish in 1992, and was disqualified in 1995 after controversially passing the pace car.

Row 10

Inside- Robby Gordon, Made 10 starts and lead 53 laps. Gambled on fuel in 1999, but came up just short.

Middle- Gary Bettenhausen, Lead 138 laps in 1972 before an ignition problem ended his day prematurely. One of the greatest sportsmen the track has seen.

Outside- Jimmy Vasser, Made eight starts, lead laps during three different races.

Row 11

Inside- Scott Dixon, Has lead laps in three of his five starts. Will start from the pole on Sunday.

Middle- Tomas Scheckter, Was impressive in 2002, but crashed late in the race towards the front of the field.

Outside- Roberto Guerrero, Steady as she goes, has lead a total of 56 laps in his 15 starts.

Bumped from the field (Honorable Mention): Davy Jones, Nigel Mansell

Bump Day Just That
Crazy last hour of bumping highlights Sunday at IMS
By Donnie Smith
May 20, 2008

Crazy Happy Hour

Sunday began and ended with Marty Roth as the 33^rd and final qualifier, but it’s much more complex than that. Roth’s qualifying speed Saturday was 215.506, which was the bubble speed Sunday afternoon, and would only survive five minutes. At 12:05, AJ Foyt IV qualified the #2 Vision Racing machine with a four-lap average of 219.184. This put 1996 winner Buddy Lazier on the bubble with his four-lap average of 217.939.

At 1:30, the 49-year old Roth went back on the track to try to put his car back in the field. Roth put together a qualification speed of 218.965, plenty fast enough to bump Lazier. This put Roger Yasukawa on the bubble with his speed of 218.010.

For the next three hours or so, Yasukawa, Lazier, and Mario Dominguez all take to the track running qualification simulations during practice to try to find the tenths of a mile an hour to make the difference between going in the field, and going home.

At 4:23, Pacific Coast Motorsports and driver Mario Dominguez have made the decision to go for a qualification attempt. Dominguez average was only 217.775, meaning Yasukawa’s speed was still safe, and it was back to the drawing board for the PCM team.

With the track closing at 6:00, drivers tried to time out the “perfect attempt” which would give them the best speed possible, as late as possible, so nobody else could go on the track and bump them back.

At 5:30, Buddy Lazier rolled his purple and fluorescent yellow Hemelgarn Johnson machine to tech inspection to make a qualifying attempt. Lazier ran three laps at 217.272, 217.204, and 217.097 respectively, and waved off the fourth lap of the run.

Mario Dominguez was next in line for attempt number two of the day, and was able to bump Yasukawa with a four-lap average of 218.620.

Yasukawa would not go quietly. The CURB Records car was already next in line for a qualifying attempt. Through three laps of Yasukawa’s run, his three lap average was identical to the thousandths of a mile per hour (third decimal place) to that of Dominguez. Yasukawa completed the run with an average speed of 218.559 mph, falling .061 mph or .05 seconds short of Mario Dominguez speed and time; keeping Yasukawa on the outside looking in.

Max Papis was scheduled to make a qualifying attempt in the rebuild Rubicon Racing car, but stalled the car leaving pit lane. The crew tried to restart the car, but discovered a clutch problem, and the car had to be withdrawn. 

With only 13 minutes until the track closes, Buddy Lazier returned to make another attempt at making the field of 33. Lazier easily bumped Dominguez with a speed of 219.015.

At 5:52, Roger Yasukawa made his final attempt, but came up short at 218.476.

Then, at 5:58, Mario Dominguez took to the track for the final qualifying attempt of the month. Dominguez lit up the speed charts with a first lap of 219.780, which was the fifth fastest lap of the day, however, as he entered turn one on his second lap, Dominguez lost control of the car, and slammed into the wall, ending his dream of qualifying for the 92^nd Indianapolis 500. Dominguez was ok.

Other News:

After qualifying, AJ Foyt IV was running some practice laps and had come in to the pit area for a routine stop. As Foyt entered onto the track, the fuel cover (called a buckeye) flew off of the Vision Racing entry. Fuel was coming out of the tank, and as the car entered turn three, it burst into flames, and hit the wall. Foyt suffered first degree burns to his neck, and some singed hair, but was ok, and cleared to drive.

American Dream Motorsports driver Phil Giebler, who was involved in a crash on Saturday was released from Methodist Hospital Sunday with bruised lungs, and a cervical sprain, but was not cleared to drive.

This is Indy:

Wednesday is Community Day at the Speedway. Gates open at 9:00am eastern time, and admission is $7. There is no track activity for drivers, but fans have an “All-Access Pass” to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The garage and pit areas are open to all fans to explore and take pictures, and you can take your own car for a lap on the famed 2.5 mile oval. There are multiple driver autograph sessions, and legendary driver Rick Mears will host a Q&A session, and will also be signing copies of his new book.

Field Set for 92^nd Running of Indy 500…For Now
Bumping begins Sunday Afternoon.
By Donnie Smith
May 18, 2008

Friday’s Practice Costly to Three:

Rookies E.J. Viso (#33 HVM Racing) and Will Power (#8 KV Racing) both made contact with the wall during Friday’s practice session. Power was the fastest non-qualified car to take the track turning a lap at 223.039 mph. Unfortunately, many of the “cross-over teams” (those coming from CART) do not have backup cars yet. KV Racing only had one extra car to share between Power and teammate Oriol Servia.

Also, Ryan Briscoe (#6 Team Penske), who qualified on the outside of row one crashed his backup car in the afternoon on Friday. All three drivers are ok, and have been cleared to drive.

Saturday Practice Littered with Accidents As Well:

A pair of rookies, and two other drivers made contact with the wall on Saturday during practice runs. During the morning practice for cars not yet in the field, rookie Mario Dominguez of Pacific Coast Motorsports hit the wall in turn one. Dominguez was examined at the infield care center and cleared to drive. He does not have a backup car, and was unable to make a qualifying attempt Saturday.

As the checkered flag was waving to signify the end of practice, Max Papis spun in turn three and made contact with the SAFER barrier. Papis’ Rubicon Racing Machine was unable to make a qualifying attempt, however, Papis was examined and cleared to drive

Andretti-Green rookie Hideki Mutoh made contact with the turn two wall just before 4:00. The bad news for AGR is Mutoh crashed the car he qualified on the outside of row three. The car sustained damage to the right side of the car. The crew will be forced to repair that machine, or to replace it with the backup, and move to the back of the field.

Twenty minutes later, Phil Giebler, who had just signed a deal with American Dream Motorsports (formerly known as Playa Del Racing) this week crashed in turn one. Giebler, who earlier was given the black flag less than two hours prior for not having a spotter, made heavy contact with the SAFER barrier needed assistance out of the car, and was taken to Methodist Hospital “Awake and alert.” Giebler has been admitted with pulmonary contusions.

Top 5 Qualifiers:

#99 Townsend Bell, Dreyer & Reinbold Racing 222.539. Will start outside row four

#06 Graham Rahal, Newman/Haas/Lanigan 222.531. Will start inside row five

#14 Darren Manning, AJ Foyt Enterprises 222.430. Will start middle row five

#18 Bruno Junqueira, Dale Coyne Racing 222.330. Will start outside row five

#02 Justin Wilson, Newman/Haas/Lanigan 222.267. Will start inside row six

Welcome to Bump Day:

Any car not currently in the field may present itself Sunday for qualification attempts from noon until 6:00. For that car to qualify, it must post a four lap average higher than the slowest four lap average in the field. This is referred to as being “on the bubble.” Currently, Marty Roth is on the bubble with a four lap average of 215.506. After a car is bumped, it will have three chances (if necessary) to try to bump the slowest speed in the field. The process continues until the gun sounds at 6:00, and the field becomes official.

In Danger of Being Bumped:

#25 Marty Roth, Roth Racing 215.506    
Donnie Says: OUT, turned some fast practice laps, but might have had a tow

#91 Buddy Lazier, Hemelgarn Racing 217.939      
Donnie Says: Will be bumped, but will be IN after re-qualifying

#98 Roger Yasukawa, Beck Motorsports 218.010               
Donnie Says: Will be bumped, but will be IN after re-qualifying

#34 Jaime Camara, Conquest Racing 219.345      
Donnie Says: OUT, has struggled all month. Team starting to lose faith.

#36 Enrique Bernoldi, Conquest Racing 219.422 
Donnie Says: IN, not enough competition to get this deep in the field.

Looking to Make The Show:

#2 AJ Foyt IV, Vision Racing- Made a qualification attempt late Saturday, but had a gearbox malfunction, and was unable to complete the run, or make another attempt.     Donnie Says: IN, Foyt should be able to make the field after some adjustments are made to the car.

#44 Max Papis, Rubicon Racing/Sam Schmidt Motorsports- Crashed on the final lap of morning practice. Team will rebuild the car, and try to get it up to speed Sunday.      Donnie Says: IN, Papis turned some solid laps the last couple days.

#96 Mario Dominguez, Pacific Coast Motorsports- Crashed in Saturday morning’s practice session. Crew will try to rebuild and qualify.        Donnie Says: OUT, Mario lacks the experience necessary to put a rebuilt car in the field of 33.

This is Indy:

Back On Track
Track open for 53 minutes of practice yesterday
May 15, 2008
By Donnie Smith

First practice after the first weekend of qualifying:

There has been rain in Indianapolis on 10 of the 14 days of May thus far. Practice yesterday was postponed all the way until 5:00, with the track closing at 6:00. There had been rain in the morning, and a light mist that continued through the afternoon. The air and track were finally dry enough to allow cars on to the track under yellow flag conditions. This meant that drivers were to use controlled speeds, and use the warm-up lanes for five minutes before the track went green. A total of 12 laps were turned when the track first was open, and precipitation started once again. It was only a short wait, and the track re-opened to full throttle green flag practice. A total of 390 laps were tallied among 29 drivers.

Pole sitter Scott Dixon was fastest in the abbreviated session with a speed of 222.834 mph. Dixon compiled 17 practice laps today. Ironically, teammate, and starting second, Dan Wheldon was second fastest yesterday at 222.810. Wheldon completed 22 laps Wednesday. Rookie Hideki Mutoh of Andretti-Green racing completed the most laps (26) on Wednesday, and reached a top speed of 221.868 (4^th fastest).

Among non-qualified drivers, John Andretti of Roth Racing was the fastest (6^th overall) with a speed of 221.386, which was on his 13^th and final lap of the day. Buddy Rice, the 2004 Indy 500 winner was second among non-qualified drivers with a speed of 220.277

Were the Rainouts Good, Bad, or Indifferent?

Depending on what your situation is Sunday’s qualifications being washed out could have been a good thing or a bad thing. Some teams are on what is called a Second Week Engine Lease Program. Nobody owns their own engine; all of them are leased through Honda and IndyCar. Everybody gets the same thing. Teams save money by not running the first week of qualifying, and start during week two. 1996 winner Buddy Lazier and Hemelgarn Racing are on a second week lease. These teams were planning on qualifying no better than 23 in the field, with 1-11 qualifying on Saturday, and 12-22 on Sunday. However, since 12-22 didn’t happen on Sunday, this gives the second week lease teams a chance to be towards the front of the field.

The teams that are on the full month lease, and didn’t get to qualify on Saturday were put at a disadvantage. Instead of being locked in the field, and being able to work on race trim, fuel mileage, and working the car in traffic, some of the focus still needs to be on qualification trim, and getting the car in the field.

The teams that are already in the field (1-11) may not have practiced on Sunday morning anyways. The track was already scheduled to be closed on Monday and Tuesday, so some drivers left Indianapolis altogether before returning for practice Wednesday.

Having a brief practice on Wednesday was not really good for anyone. At this point, everyone needs to log the laps. As of today, rain is in the forecast for Saturday, Sunday, Monday, Thursday, and Friday. If the forecast holds true, there will be many frustrated race teams.

Donnie Smith’s Predictions:

12^th Qualifier- #15 Buddy Rice, Dreyer & Reinbold Racing

Row 5:

Inside- #44 Max Papis, Rubicon/Sam Schmidt

Middle- #06 Graham Rahal, Newman/Haas/Lanigan

Outside- #18 Bruno Junqueria, Dale Coyne

Qualifying 1/3 Complete
And guess what? Rain!
May 12th, 2008
By Donnie Smith
Donnie Smith Sets the Pace!

Weather Update:

Much like a Bill Murray flick, the same thing keeps happening everyday. Rain washed out the second half of Fast Friday, but held off long enough to allow qualifying on Saturday. However, Mother Nature came into play once again on Sunday, when positions 12-22 were supposed to be filled. The remainder of the field will be filled on Saturday during Armed Forces Weekend. Sunday will be ‘Bump Day,’ meaning any car that is not in the 33-car field will have an opportunity to bump the slowest qualifier. 

Qualification Recap: Target- Ganassi driver Scott Dixon, who posted the fastest practice speed on Friday qualified for his first Indy 500 pole. Dixon compiled a four-lap average of 226.366 Teammate, and 2005 Indy 500 Champion Dan Wheldon will start second, after a 226.110 mile per hour effort on Saturday. Rounding out the front row will be Ryan Briscoe, driving for Team Penske, who had a four-lap average of 226.080.

Row 2: Inside- Helio Castroneves, Middle- Danica Patrick, Outside- Tony Kanaan

Row 3: Inside- Marco Andretti, Middle- Vitor Meira, Outside- Hideki Mutoh

Row 4: Inside- Ed Carpenter, Middle- Tomas Scheckter

Best of the Rest:

Buddy Rice- The 2004 race winner had the fastest practice speed on Friday amongst those who failed to qualify Saturday (224.170)

Graham Rahal- Son of 1986 winner Bobby Rahal won the Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, and has completed many laps already this month, and just missed out on a top 11 qualifying spot.

Will Power- Won the road race in Long Beach a few weeks ago, turned the 14^th fastest lap of Fast Friday (223.550), and has the perfect name.

Upcoming Schedule-

Practice will take place at the Speedway on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday this week (weather permitting of course), with gates opening at 9:00 and practice beginning at noon. Qualifying is scheduled to take place Saturday afternoon, and bumping Sunday afternoon.

This is Indy- One of my favorite Indy 500 moments came in 2006. On lap 191, Felipe Giaffone crashed to bring out the yellow flag. Michael Andretti assumed the lead after a brief rotation of pit stops with just six laps remaining. Andretti, who was competing in his 15^th Indianapolis 500, and has lead more laps than any non-winner in 500 history had one of his best shots, especially with his 19-year old son Marco right behind him in second. Sam Hornish Jr. had battled all the way to third after having problems during a pit stop with about 50 laps to go, where he was penalized for leaving the pit with the fuel hose attached. Many (including myself, a Hornish fan) had thought at that point, the pole-sitters chances of winning the 90^th running of the race were gone. However, veteran race strategist and team owner Roger Penske kept faith in the Defiance, Ohio native.

The younger Andretti took the lead from his elder with just few laps remaining. Hornish then overtook Michael and stood in second place as the white flag waved. Hornish challenged Marco all the way around the 2.5 mile oval. Finally, on the front stretch of the final lap, Hornish made an all out effort to overtake the rookie. With a full head of steam, Hornish ducked to the inside of Andretti, and made the pass just before the finish line, to claim his first Indy 500 title in his seventh start. Hornish’s margin of victory was a mere .0635 seconds, the second closest finish in Indy 500 history.

*Photos by Dan Sanger

Rain Rain, Go Away…Please?

Race to the Race Part 1  May 8, 2008
By Donnie Smith

May Showers Bring Unhappy Drivers- For the second day in a row, the full day of practice at Indianapolis Motor Speedway was rained out. On Wednesday, practice was scheduled to begin at noon. However, a rainstorm moved in and covered the track at about 11:45. Crews began the drying process, only to have another system move in and wash out the day. Thursday, a much larger system came through, and no window was available to begin the drying process. The last practice before Pole Day (the first day of qualifying) has been known as ‘Fast Friday.’ The 2008 version of Fast Friday will be crucial for teams looking to qualify on one of the first three rows. So far, 21-year old Marco Andretti has been the fastest car on the track, running a lap at just over 226 MPH.

Together as One- For the first time in 12 years, there is only one major open-wheel racing circuit, the IndyCar Series. This March, Champ Car (CART) and the Indy Racing League (IRL) merged to create a single series. The Indy 500 over the past couple years has had just enough cars to compete for the 33 starting spots on the grid. With the merger, more drivers, and owners will field teams to compete in the Greatest Spectacle in Racing. A total of 13 rookies participated in the Rookie Orientation Program (ROP) last weekend.

Pole Day procedure- A blind draw will determine the qualifying order. Every car gets three qualifying attempts per day. The driver with the highest four lap average wins the pole position. At any point during the four lap run, a crew chief can make the decision to “wave off” the qualifying attempt. If an attempt is waved off, the car can later be re-entered into the technical inspection line for another chance. A crew chief will wave off the attempt if he feels the car is performing well below expectations. This is usually done by higher profile teams that have the time, money, and resources to make the adjustments necessary to put the car in the front of the field. Other crews will simply try to get the car in the field. On the first day of qualifying, only the first 11 positions are open. After 11 cars have qualified, the “bumping” process begins in those 11 spots. The slowest car is considered “on the bubble.” A car who has not qualified can try to put together a four lap average faster than the slowest car to bump them from the field. Saturday at 6:00, the first 11 spots in the field are set in stone.

 What to watch:

·  Cars looking to qualify in the front row will turn many laps on Friday to get their drivers
reacquainted with the course, and to get all their qualifying setups down.

·  Saturday morning from 9:00am to 11:00am, teams will be finalizing their qualification setup.

·  Teams with limited resources, that just want to make the field will likely skip their turn to qualify on pole day, and will wait until Sunday or next Saturday to get the car in positions 12-33.

Donnie Smith’s Predicted Row 1:

Pole- #11 Tony Kanaan Andretti-Green Racing

Middle- #3 Helio Castroneves Penske Racing

Outside- #26 Marco Andretti Andretti-Green Racing

Donnie Smith’s Predicted Row 2:

Inside- #10 Dan Wheldon Target-Ganassi Racing

Middle- #6 Ryan Briscoe Penske Racing

Outside- #9 Scott Dixon Target-Ganassi Racing

This is Indy:

The tradition of the winning driver drinking milk in victory lane began in 1936 with Louis Meyer, who asked for a glass of buttermilk, which his mother encouraged him to drink on hot days.

In 1993, Brazilian Emerson Fitipaldi asked for a glass of orange juice. Fitipaldi will drive the Corvette Pace Car on May 25 to start the 92^nd running of the Indianapolis 500.