The 2004 Indianapolis 500 winner, Buddy Rice, took the lead on Lap 49 gambling on pit strategy under a full-course caution. The gamble would pay off as Rice was in line to get second place until Rice was involved in a multi-car crash on Lap 87 with Dario Franchitti and Scott Dixon. The crashed ended the race on Lap 89 under yellow with Rice falling back to the seventh position. Teammate Sarah Fisher was involved in a multi-car crash on Lap 29 which ended her day.
“Starting back in 15th and taking the lead of the race and running second was a lot of work for us today, ” said team co-owner, Dennis Reinbold. “We worked really hard today and it’s a shame we weren’t able to finish the race. We were real tight on fuel so a lot of strategy came into play today and it was some worked and some didn’t work so well. In the end, we ran up front for much of the day with a real legitimate shot at winning this thing today. ”
Although his day began in the 15th position, Rice advanced 14 positions to take the lead and kept it for seven laps before surrendering it to his former teammate, Danica Patrick, on Lap 64 for a pit stop.
Starting the race from the 15th position, Rice gambled early on fuel strategy on Lap 10 which dropped him a position to 16th after Scott Sharp. On Lap 27, another yellow flag would fly with Rice staying out instead of pitting—he would move up to 10th. By Lap 37, he was 11th and the last car on the lead lap, pitting for new tires and 22 gallons of Ethanol fuel.
He took over the lead on Lap 49, having not led since Iowa back in June. He gave up the lead on Lap 57 due to pitting; he was then in ninth. On Lap 62, he got around Darren Manning to advance to eighth place. Dan Wheldon pitted for fuel on Lap 64 giving Rice the seventh position. By Lap 67, he had moved back into the fourth position with Helio Castroneves and Thomas Scheckter making contact. By Lap 70, Rice was radioed from Reinbold to conserve fuel and was running second. Tony Kanaan was leading Rice until the end when Rice, Franchitti and Dixon were involved in a multi-car accident ending Rice’s day and sending him to the seventh position. Rice has now led 49 laps this season, has recorded 10 Top-10 finishes for DRR and now is tied with Marco Andretti with 338 points for 10th and 11th place.
“Obviously it was a crash fest and I just hate to get involved in the points championship because of where I’m at, ” said Rice, who recorded his best finish since finishing fifth at Michigan in early August. “Those two were battling it out and to take them out with a lap to go or get involved in an accident because I ran out of fuel is just disappointing for everybody involved. Track position was key for us today. I think we finally got a car that was fast and we were able to run the times of the leaders. It was just hard to get by and that second stint we kept moving up and passing people. Things were starting to come together. It’s just disappointing to be squeezed that tight on fuel. We thought it was a timed race I guess and we were in a position to be fine and then once they kept running it out we ran out of fuel. I had no place to go really. It’s very difficult to get out of the way. I went down and apologized to Dario, Mike Hull and Mr. Ganassi. I just feel bad. They were cool and they understand. It wasn’t like I was trying to crash. I ran there the whole hour and a half of the race. It’s just disappointing to be involved in the championship that way. I didn’t mean for any of that to happen. I just wanted a solid strong finish for Dreyer & Reinbold and our new sponsor Hard Rock Hotel and Casino Las Vegas. It was extremely exciting. It’s where we want to be at. Dennis Reinbold and Robbie Buhl have stepped up and tried to make their team better. We are in a good position. We just need a little bit more help and a little more luck here and I think we’ll be okay. Our finish was good from starting basically last. To move up and run up front, we were in an excellent position. I’m just disappointed I didn’t want to crash those two guys out. I knew they were behind me and I was trying to just keep pace. I was running with the leader; to have that happen just sucks. ”
Fisher’s day was short-lived as she was involved in a multi-car crash involving Sam Hornish, Jr., Fisher, Danica Patrick, Vitor Meira and Darren Manning. It would only end Fisher and Meira’s days as the rest continued on in the race. During the Lap 28 incident, Fisher broke her right rear-rear suspension. It was her third early exit from a race this season.
“I was gracious to cars on the restart and let those who had a half a car more on me go, ” said Fisher, who was competing in just her fifth road course. “Sam came alongside and he wasn’t up to my side pod but I think he just got to my right rear; I didn’t even see him that far. I waited till the last minute to turn in and we got together. I’ve been giving these guys as much respect as possible the whole weekend and throughout the first part of the race and letting them go. I really wanted to give them as much room as possible because I’m here to learn and that was my goal. ”
Prior to the race, the IndyCar Series drivers took to the track at 10:30am for a final warm-up session prior to the start of the inaugural Detroit Belle Isle Indy Grand Prix. The session was less than great for most teams as there were three cautions for crash damage. Rice ran 16th quick with a time of 1:16.2855 and a speed of 97.686 miles per hour. Rice’s No. 15 Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Las Vegas crew worked on getting grip as the car was just “not nice. ” His car was experiencing push and the front was just not turning when he went to power. Teammate, Fisher, who joined Rice in turning eight laps, had a time time of 1:19.2465 and a speed of 94.036 mph. Fisher’s No. 5 AAMCO Transmissions car was running much better Fisher proclaimed when she made her first pit stop. Now, she stated, she needed to work on her timing but did state she was having trouble with the front locking up.
The IndyCar Series returns for the final time this season at ChicagoLand Speedway next weekend for the Peak AntiFreeze Indy 300 presented by Mr. Clean. Joliet, Illinois, will play host to the event which will be carried live on ABC at 4:00 p. m. EST on Sunday, September 9, 2007.
About Buddy Rice:
In 2006, Rice drove for RLR with a best starting position of seventh and a best finish of fourth. It isn’t surprising that Rice’s best finish in 2006 came on the type of track that helped establish his racing career, a road circuit. In 2005, he battled through a frustrating season missing the Indy 500 due to a neck injury. His 2005 season featured a third at Motegi and a second at Infineon raceway. He was also named to drive in the IROC series finishing fourth overall. In 2004, Rice experienced a “Cinderella Season” winning the legendary Indy 500 from the pole position after being named as a replacement driver for injured driver Kenny Brack. He went on to lead eight races (Homestead, Indianapolis, Texas 1, Kansas, Nashville, Michigan, Kentucky, Chicagoland) for a total of 342 laps. He finished the season in third place for the IndyCar Series points championship. In 2003, Rice finished 16th in the IndyCar Series points championship after competing in 13 of 16 races for Red Bull Cheever Racing. He went on to score four top-10 finishes in his rookie season. In 2002, Rice competed in the final five races of the IndyCar Series season when he was named to Red Bull Cheever Racing. He started and finished second at Michigan in his first IndyCar Series event leading 15 laps. His 2002 season ended with four top-10 finishes. In 2001, Rice tested with Red Bull Cheever racing and signed a driver development contract with Team Rahal and served as an observer on the team’s open-wheel program. In 2000, he won the Toyota Atlantic championship for DSTP Motorsports, scoring five wins. He finished fifth in 1999 in the Toyota Atlantic points driving for Lynx Racing and finished seventh in in the points race in 1998. He also won the Gilles Villeneuve Memorial Award. In 1997, Rice drove in the U. S. F2000 for Lynx Racing/DSTP Motorsports, finishing fourth in points and winning at Phoenix. He also won the Valvoline Team USA Scholarship, where he represented the United States in Europe’s prestigious Nations Cup. Rice currently resides in Phoenix, Arizona with his wife.
About Sarah Fisher:
At just 26 years old, she has already competed in five Indianapolis 500’s and been voted the Most Popular Driver four times in two separate series. In 2006, Fisher competed in two IndyCar Series races for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing at Kentucky Speedway and Chicagoland Speedway placing 12th and 16th respectively. In 2005, she was part of NASCAR’s Drive for Diversity program, piloting the No. 20 Chevrolet Monte Carlo for the Bill McAnally Racing/Richard Childress Racing Development Program in the NASCAR Grand National Division, West Series, and capturing four top-ten finishes. Fisher made her first appearance in the IndyCar Series back in 1999 for Derrick Walker, making her the youngest person ever to pass the IndyCar Series Rookie test. In 2000, she became just the third woman and one of the youngest drivers ever to compete in the world’s greatest race – the Indianapolis 500. Sarah continued to make history that year at Kentucky Speedway, becoming the youngest person to lead laps during an IndyCar Series event and the youngest and only woman to ever stand on a podium with her third-place finish in that event. In 2001, Sarah claimed a second-place finish at the IndyCar Series inaugural race at Homestead Miami Speedway, the best result ever by a woman in Indy-style racing. In 2002, Sarah became the first woman to ever qualify fastest for a major North American open-wheel event capturing the pole and setting a new track record at Kentucky Speedway. Fisher raced quarter-midgets and go-karts until she was a teenager, winning the 1991, 1993 and 1994 World Karting Association Grand National Championships, the 1993 Circleville Points Championship and the 1994 WKA Grand National Championship. By age 15, Sarah was racing Winged Outlaw Sprint cars winning the 1995 Dirt Track Racing Round-Up Rookie of the Year. Sarah has been a guest or profiled on a variety of television programs including, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Live with Regis and Kelly, Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel, NBC Nightly News with Tom Brokaw, Good Morning America and The Today Show. She has also appeared in the pages of People, Teen People, Cosmo Girl, Seventeen, Glamour, Sporting Woman, Mademoiselle, Sports Illustrated, Time, Newsweek, U.S. News & World Report and many other magazines. Sarah currently resides in Indianapolis with her chocolate lab, Wrigley.
About Dreyer & Reinbold Racing:
Indianapolis-based Dreyer & Reinbold Racing is owned by Dennis Reinbold and Robbie Buhl. The team was formed in 2000 by Dennis Reinbold and Eric DeBord, after partnering with Sinden Racing in 1999 for two races with driver Robbie Buhl. The team won their first race at Walt Disney World Speedway in 2000, and Buhl joined the team as a co-owner in 2000. In January 30, DRR announced that 2004 Indianapolis 500 winner Buddy Rice and four-time Most Popular Driver Sarah Fisher would wheel the team entries in 2007; expanding to a two-car team for the first time since 2003. In 2006, DRR fielded Ryan Briscoe in four events and Sarah Fisher in two events to round out the season. Previous drivers include, Buddy Lazier (2006), who drove in seven races for DRR, Al Unser, Jr. (2006), who drove a second entry at Indy alongside Lazier, Roger Yasukawa (2005), Jeff Bucknum (2005), who piloted a car in Japan and Indy, and Felipe Giaffone, who moved into the driver’s seat following Buhl’s retirement in 2004. Buddy Lazier also piloted an entry at Indy in 2004. Along with Buhl, the team also fielded a second car in 2002 and 2003 for driver Sarah Fisher, three times voted the league’s “Most Popular Driver. ” With teammate Buhl, Steve Knapp drove the team’s second entry at Indy in 2000.
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