Moving Through the 500 Field, 23-33

Now that the IZOD IndyCar Series has taken the field of 33 through an east-coast media blitz, it's to refocus on the 94th running of the Indianapolis 500, and breaking down just who can come away with the Borg-Warner Trophy.  Over the next three days, we'll move through the field, breaking down the chances (or lack thereof) of each driver.  Today, we look at the last 11 drivers in the 500.

News & Notes

So, cleaning up from yesterday (where I suspect they are still picking up wing bits and other debris in the hills of Sonoma) and looking into today's headlines:

• Sarah Fisher Racing announced that she will be "going pink" at Homestead-Miami, working to raise money and awareness for Susan G. Komen For the Cure. Great move on SFR's part - their sponsor activation for the event appears to be tremendous and aligning Komen with SFR is a great public relations/marketing move on both sides.
• In an interview with Curt Cavin of the Indianapolis Star, Nelson Philippe says that Will Power thought he killed Philippe in their scary wreck at Sonoma (you can watch it here). Philippe, whose brake pedal went through his left foot, will be sidelined for about 2 months with the broken foot and broken right leg. As for Power, he suffered two compression fractures of two vertebrae in his lower back, had a concussion and knocked out two teeth when his helmet slammed into the steering wheel.
• Cavin also filed a story reaffirming that Danica Patrick and Scott Dixon will both be signing new contracts in the coming weeks. Dixon confirmed that he had spoken with Gil de Ferran about de Ferran's new IndyCar team, but nothing could be worked out between the two. Patrick went into more detail about her reasons for re-signing with Andretti-Green (who whatever it will be called in 2010 and beyond), and as Cavin relates:

Patrick said Andretti has put extra effort into her program this season. He became her race strategist, and she has noticed he focuses on her car's performance during practices, qualifying and races before checking on the status of the team's other cars, including the one driven by his son, Marco.

• I wonder how Marco feels about that. Patrick also mentions that Michael Andretti has involved her in some of his discussions about streamlining the four-car team's operation in the upcoming offseason. I also wonder if he's involved Marco and Tony Kanaan in those talks, too.
• Believe it or not, Tony Kanaan and Helio Castroneves disagree on what caused their contact at Infineon. (Curt Cavin is the busiest man in motor sports, even if he's stuck in Indianapolis). I chalked their contact up to a racing incident on Sunday - Kanaan tried to make a pass in a tough spot, while Castroneves probably could have given some more room. Since neither one really gave at all, they would up hitting each other, which probably caused Castroneves to suffer suspension failure later in the race. That still makes sense to me.
  
• Lastly, I need to touch on something I heard yesterday on 1260-AM WNDE. During JMV's interview with Robin Miller, he casually mentioned that The Indianapolis Star has told Curt Cavin that he can no longer attend races that require an overnight stay. (You may have noticed that The Star's recap from Sonoma was the Associated Press story) Frankly, if this is true, it disgusts me. I know times are tough for newspapers, but given the stature of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the auto racing beat at The Indianapolis Star may be the nation's premier auto racing beat. For The Star not to have a presence at races outside of the Midwest is appaling to me. Cavin is one of the paper's best reporters (in my opinion), offering insight into the world of auto racing that you won't find in many papers. For him to be taken off the road in many cases is sad.

Does a 2003 Indycar qualify as a clunker?

When I first heard the news that Sarah Fisher Racing had received a second car, I did not think much of it. "A second car, great - a fine gesture from Hartman Oil," was my thought process.

Then I read this, courtesy of Curt Cavin's article on IndyStar.com:

Fisher’s team had only one car, a 2003 model that is thought to be the oldest in the series still be used as a primary car.

You have to be kidding me - for the operation of Sarah Fisher Racing to survive on the back of a 2003 model IndyCar is remarkable. Not only was it a huge risk, but the competitive disadvantage the team was at had to be staggering. Knowing that they were running a clunker and still landing sponsorships and putting forth decent results (which now seem even more impressive considering they were running a 2003 model car) is a testament to the personality of Sarah Fisher.

So, best of luck with the new car to SFR; it sounds like the car will be ready to run in the season finale at Homestead, so we'll see how the team fares with a balanced playing field. If they've come this far with a 2003, I would imagine they can grow by leaps and bounds (I didn't say they'd win a race) with a new one.