The race started with both drivers complaining that they were having minor problems with their cars. Fisher radioed that her car “was loose on entry” and Rice stated that “something just doesn’t feel good.” Rice was quick to pit hitting pit road on Lap 12 for fuel, tires and front wing. Something had went wrong and no fuel was dispensed into Rice’s No. 5 Honda powered Dallara. He would return to pit lane on lap 49, down one lap.
“This wasn’t exactly what we were looking for but we got into the top 10,” said Rice, whose best finish at Homestead-Miami Speedway is seventh and came in 2004. “We had one bad stint; basically with loosing the radio and the car got loose caused us to lose some spots. Had we not had that one bad stint, we would have been right there. In this day and age and with the IndyCar Series as competitive as it is, you cannot make a mistake like that; you lose track position and it stays green for so long.”
As the race went on, Rice gained positions back on the track and found himself sitting within the top 10. Along with Ed Carpenter, Dario Franchitti, Helio Castroneves and Thomas Scheckter, Rice too was down a lap from the race leaders.
“Otherwise for the weekend, it was a good start for everybody,” continued Rice. “Sarah had a good finish and it’s a great way for all of us to start the season off. Basically, we were last in owner points and now we are in the middle for the 2007 season. We just need to keep moving up. St Pete is going to be solid. For myself and Dreyer & Reinbold, this was an excellent way to start the season off.”
Fisher on the other hand was looking to settler her nervous car throughout the race as the front of the car continued to dance through the corners. Her car just seemed uncomfortable and she reported, “I just can’t feel the front.” Further, both teams struggled with radio issues causing the drivers to labor to communicate with crew members.
“We both came out and didn’t have the cars that we expected, said Fisher, who placed second at Homestead-Miami Speedway in 2001. “If we can have less mistakes in the couple practice sessions that we have, we’ll be in better shape. I was chasing it all night. A bunch of wing, a bunch of weight jacker; they were both maxed out and I still felt uncomfortable. It is what it is. We’ll learn from it. We definitely learned a lot today and have a great start to the season. I think 10th and 11th is a starting place for us.”
Sebring will play host to Dreyer & Reinbold Racing on Tuesday, March 27, 2007, as both Rice and Fisher, who announced she would also compete on the road courses, will take to the road course for a day of practice. The test will simply be Fisher’s second day on a road course.
Dreyer & Reinbold Racing returns to race weekend action on the streets of St. Petersburg along with drivers Buddy Rice and Sarah Fisher. The Dreyer & Reinbold team will hope to bank off the momentum from their 10th and 11th place finishes as they head into race number two of the IndyCar Series season.
The Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg will be the second race of the 17-race 207 season on the IndyCar Series circuit. The streets of St. Petersburg will place host to the race which will be carried live on ESPN at 2:30 p. m. (EDT) on Sunday, April 1, 2007. Additional coverage will be available on IMS Radio, XM Satellite Radio Channel 145 “IndyCar Racing,” www.dreyerreinbold.com/racing and www.indycar.com.
About Buddy Rice:
In 2006, Rice drove for Rahal Letterman racing 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. For more information, please visit Buddy Rice on the World Wide Web at www.buddyrice.com.
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. For more information, please visit Sarah Fisher on the World Wide Web at www.sarahfisher.com.
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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