Dreyer & Reinbold Racing’s Buddy Rice took the lead of the ABC Supply Co./A.J. Foyt 225 on Lap 25 under caution to lead his first laps since leading five laps at Watkins Glen in 2006. The 2004 Indianapolis 500 winner led 36 laps on Sunday afternoon before Rice pushed up and made contact with the SAFER Barrier in Turn 2. Teammate Sarah Fisher struggled with a clutch issues hampering pit stops and leaving her in the 14th position when the checkered flag flew for Tony Kannan to end the race.
“With Buddy, we took a gamble early on because we didn’t think we were in a pit window situation and we wanted to save our tires,” said team co-owner Dennis Reinbold, whose team has a previous best finish of 13th and came in 2004 with previous driver, Felipe Giaffone. “We ran up front and Buddy did a really good job. He was really solid but we just caught no breaks during the race on yellows and that ended up cycling us back. We would have been ok towards the end because we were out of sequence and the rest of the field would have probably had to stop when we didn’t. It just didn’t work out very well for us. Unfortunately we were running around in the back of the field and Buddy had to avoid some other cars, got up in the gray and that was the end of our day.”
Rice began the race in the seventh position but quickly fell back two positions. By Lap 20, he had gained a position back leaving him in the eighth position before a yellow flag flew for debris on the frontstretch on Lap 22. The No. 15 Roll Coater/Dreyer & Reinbold Racing Honda Dallara crew chose to gamble on pit strategy and chose not to pit under yellow; current leaders, Helio Castroneves, Tony Kanaan, Dan Wheldon, Scott Dixon and Sam Hornish, Jr. all chose to pit.
The Phoenix native officially took the lead on Lap 25 under yellow and lead the field into Turn 1 when the green flag flew on Lap 29. On Lap 62, Castroneves passed Rice for the lead in Turn 3. By the end of Lap 62, Rice had fallen to the seventh position then chose to pit on Lap 64 for four new tires and fuel. When he returned to the track, he was in the 17th position.
On Lap 158 Rice brought out the yellow flag when he pushed up and made hard contact with the wall in Turn 2 with heavy damage to the right side of his car. He climbed from the car without assistance and was later released from the infield care center. He was sidelined and left in the 18th position.
“Basically we were out of sequence and the tires were getting old and it’s hard to keep up with those guys,” said Rice, whose best finish at the Milwaukee Mile is second and came in 2004 after winning the legendary Indianapolis 500. “I know they swept the upper lane but I pushed up there, got marbles on the tires and it was over with.”
His teammate, Sarah Fisher, who was making her first appearance at the Milwaukee Mile, began her race in the 16th position alongside Darren Manning but also quickly lost positions in the race. When pitting under yellow on Lap 22, Fisher’s crew struggled during their first pit stop of the race. She returned to pit lane on Lap 88 for fuel and tires but stalled the car when leaving her pit box due to a clutch issue. Fisher finished the race on all four tires in the 14th position.
“We had a really long day out there today,” said Fisher, who made her 36th start with Dreyer & Reinbold Racing. “It was my first time here at the Milwaukee Mile and we had some clutch issues which gave us some trouble during pit stops. It is what it is; I’m looking forward to Texas as it’s my favorite track on the IndyCar Series circuit.”
The Checkered flag was captured by Andretti Green Racing’s Tony Kanaan followed by 2007 Indianapolis 500 winner, Dario Franchitti in the second place position.
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