Tony Kanaan topped the speed chart as rain cut short preparations for the 2010 Indianapolis 500 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Kanaan recorded a lap of 39.6870 seconds (226.775 mph) in the No. 11 Team 7-Eleven car for Andretti Autosport while Paul Tracy, driving the No. 15 GEICO-KV Racing Technology car, bolted to second quick (226.322 mph). Hideki Mutoh was third (226.230), his second consecutive appearance in the top five in the No. 06 Formula Dream/Panasonic car for Newman/Haas Racing.
Marco Andretti (226.108) and 2005 race winner Dan Wheldon (226.106) also were in the top five, fourth and fifth, respectively. Helio Castroneves (226.080), the 2009 pole sitter, was followed by Team Penske teammate Will Power (226.836), Alex Tagliani (225.609), Graham Rahal (225.559) and Davey Hamilton (225.431).
2002 Indianapolis 500 polesitter Bruno Junqueira made his first appearance of the week at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Junqueira turned 14 laps on the 2.5-mile oval to shake down the No. 29 William Rast/Bryan Herta Autosport car for rookie Sebastian Saavedra at the request of team co-owner Bryan Herta.
Twenty-seven cars were within .5796 of a second of the top. Eight different teams were represented in the top 10.
DAY 6 NOTEBOOK:
PGA Tour legend Fuzzy Zoeller visited the Speedway on Thursday as a guest of Panther Racing. Zoeller’s vodka brand, Fuzzy’s Ultra Premium Vodka, is serving as a sponsor of the No. 20 Panther/Vision/Fuzzy’s Vodka entry driven this month by veteran Ed Carpenter.
Zoeller, a native of New Albany, Ind., has won 10 PGA Tour events, including The Masters as a rookie in 1979 and the U.S. Open in 1984. He plays now on the Champions Tour.
FUZZY ZOELLER: (Have you been to the Speedway before?): “Yes, I was here last year, and I have been here for time trials. I’m blessed: I was born and raised in Indiana, so I have had the opportunity to come up here, and it is something to see. It’s like the Kentucky Derby of thoroughbred racing; it’s the Derby of sports cars.” (About wearing a team headset and looking at car telemetry): “I didn’t know what the hell I was looking at, but they were explaining it to me, you know what I mean. But at least I could hear, which was great. It’s amazing the technology today that goes behind auto racing. I never knew all this stuff was going on. I thought these guys were just gas pumpers, tire changers. But the littlest twitch of a nut here or there can mean that much of a difference.” (That’s like golf?): “Well, it is. Eddie (Carpenter) was telling them he was fine through Turn 3, and Turn 2 he felt a push. I mean, that’s major stuff. To me, if I got a push, oh, man, I would be excited. But for these guys, that’s not good. They’re trying to fine-tune it. That’s what they are trying to do.”
The Honda Indy Edmonton has entered into promotional relationships with Alex Tagliani and FAZZT Race Team and with Paul Tracy and KV Racing Technology to form “Team Oh Canada” for the Indianapolis 500.
The promotion includes prominent Honda Indy Edmonton logo placement on both cars for the 500 Mile Race. Tagliani’s No. 77 FAZZT Race Team car also will display the logo for the IZOD IndyCar Series races in Texas, Watkins Glen, Toronto and Edmonton.
The Honda Indy Edmonton will carry out promotional opportunities with Team Oh Canada in other markets, including event promotions at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
KEN KNOWLES (President, Northlands, promoter of Honda Indy Edmonton): “Northlands and the Honda Indy Edmonton are absolutely delighted to partner with Canada’s two best IZOD IndyCar Series drivers. Our promotional support for Alex and Paul provides us with an incredible opportunity to place our event, and the city of Edmonton, in the international spotlight while reaching a huge international audience.”
Herbalife Ganassi/Schmidt Racing Team engineer Andy Brown talked today about how he and driver Townsend Bell are dealing with the numerous weather setbacks this week.
ANDY BROWN: “It does help having known Townsend from a few years ago in our time together at Panther (Racing). Also, I’ve been a race engineer now for 28 years, so in that time you learn it doesn’t help to get flustered and raising your voice, as it just puts everyone on edge. Things just go downhill very rapidly from there. So I try to keep things calm and level. Things are going to go wrong. They are bound to go wrong, but it’s how you react when they do. If you keep things calm, you’ll get through the bad times more quickly. It’s been a pleasure to work with him (Townsend) again, and I’m really enjoying this month.”
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As much as Townsend Bell loves the Indianapolis 500 and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, he is a little eager to get home to Santa Monica, Calif., where a new BMW S 1000 RR motorcycle is waiting for him. Bell, an avid motorcyclist, received the keys to his new motorcycle today at BMW Motorcycles of Indianapolis.
Bell also took delivery today of a new Schuberth racing helmet. He walked the helmet through IZOD IndyCar Series tech himself, where it quickly passed, and wore it in an afternoon practice run. Rookie Bertrand Baguette is the only other driver wearing the German-made Schuberth so far this Month of May at Indy.
Another client of Schuberth is F1 World Champion Michael Schumacher. The Schuberth company prides itself on the aerodynamics and aeroacoustics of its helmets.
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