By Lori Wood
Tribune-Star Correspondent
INDIANAPOLIS
May 11, 2008 11:34 pm
—
Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Indy Racing League officials called it an early day Sunday because of inclement weather.
Brian Barnhart, President of Competition and Operations, announced that qualifying positions 12-33 would be determined on Saturday. The
current qualifying format calls for 11 positions filled each of the first three qualifying days. Bumping begins on the second Sunday of time trials.
Joie Chitwood, president and CEO of IMS, said that with the high winds, on and off rain and temperature in the 50s, drying the track in enough time to allow for practice before qualifying attempts would not be a realistic situation.
The last qualifying day to be completely rained out was Pole Day of 2006
Barnhart foresees a flood of activity Wednesday when the track re-opens for practice for all teams. “We are going to see a lot of full-tank runs. It will be a very busy week,” he noted.
Teams have a mileage limit on their Honda engines and also a limit of 35 sets of tires for the entire month at Indianapolis, but with the days lost to weather, it will not be a problem for any team. “With the days we have lost, it will be a free for all,” Barnhart said.
With 22 starting slots up for grabs this Saturday, teams who are second-week programs could benefit greatly from the cancellation of Sunday’s events. Teams with limited track time or Indy-only programs could find themselves starting in the middle rows instead of the back. “Teams will have to manage their practice time very wisely. It is a matter of being smart at doing what you are doing,” Barnhart added.
He noted that other second-week programs may enter into mix. A.J. Foyt Racing will most likely field a second car, while Greg Beck of Beck Motorsports has yet to name a driver for his entry. Ron Hemelgarn is preparing 1996 Indy 500 champion Buddy Lazier for a qualification run.
Rookie Will Power was bumped from the top 11 on Saturday but was pleased overall. “I think we will qualify in the top 22. I don’t think we are that far off. I’m so proud of our guys. They never stop working. I’m almost glad it’s a rain day where they can go home early and take a couple of days off.” Power expects to work next week mostly on race set up. “That is the most important thing,” he noted.
Former winner Buddy Rice’s car was not where he wanted it to be Saturday, and was anxious to qualify Sunday. “Now we will just work on getting the car in race trim. I still believe I have a very good qualifying car, but it is time to work on race setup,” he said.
“It’s going to be the same for everybody except the first 11 guys,” said Max Papis of Rubicon Racing. “We will have to dedicate a little time to qualifying setup and most of the time to the race setup.”
Although the speedway does not release attendance figures, Saturday’s Pole Day attendance pleased Chitwood. “By 11 a.m. there was a lot of traffic. I was ecstatic with the crowd. I thought there was a great energy [Saturday],” he said.
Chitwood pointed to the many positive storylines for the league in the last year, with two-time Indy 500 champion Helio Castrovneves winning on “Dancing With the Stars,” the reunification of Champ Car and IndyCar, Graham Rahal winning at St. Petersburg and most recently Danica Patrick’s first win in Montegi.
“We are very pleased with the new format. It is still in its infancy and it shows you the gamesmanship of the teams,” said Chitwood.
Barnhart agreed. “I think the format the last couple of years has played out very well. I think it places a premium on strategic decisions and thoughts of the team manager and drivers,” he said.
All teams return to the track on Wednesday for three days of practice before qualifying resumes Saturday. Public gates open at 9 a.m. while IndyCar practice runs from noon to 6 p.m. Admission is $5.
n Notebook — Every year there is a parade of drivers without a car walking through Gasoline Alley hoping for an opportunity to run Indianapolis. Roberto Moreno was one of them. “If there is a situation that I can jump in, I will jump in in no time,” he said Sunday. Moreno has three Indy 500s to his credits, last year running for Chastain Motorsports.
Chuck Buckman, who was injured in pit lane Friday when he was clipped by Danica Patrick’s car, is still in Methodist Hospital undergoing further observation. He suffered a concussion and lacerations to the face and scalp. Buckman is the chief mechanic for Dale Coyne Racing.
Two mechanics for Rahal Letterman Racing were involved in an accident Saturday. Mike Kranz and Jim Volini were en route to the team’s shop in Hilliard, Ohio, to repair the damaged car of Ryan Hunter-Reay when they collided with a deer on Interstate 70. They were uninjured, but the car had to be towed 100 miles to the shop.
KV Racing driver Oriol Servia used a remote-control noisemaker to disrupt the interview of teammate Will Power. Power apologized to the interviewer and explained where the noises were coming from. “It’s just something we have to do to entertain ourselves on days like today,” Servia said.
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