[IRL/FIL] 2009 Season

Including the Indy 500 and all junior series leading up to IndyCar
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kals
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#46

Post by kals »

Bottom post of the previous page:

Autosport.com wrote:Petty to enter car in Indy 500

By Matt Beer Monday, April 6th 2009, 19:39 GMT


NASCAR legend Richard Petty is to enter a car in the Indianapolis 500 for the first time this year.

Veteran driver John Andretti will drive for the team, which will be run in association with IndyCar Series squad Dreyer & Reinbold Racing.

Seven times NASCAR champion Petty said he was achieving an ambition by entering Indy.

"This is pretty exciting news for all of us," he said. "Never did I think I would have the opportunity to be part of the Indianapolis 500. I know how much this means to John Andretti and the Andretti family, and I'm looking forward to seeing John on the track in May.

"I'm not sure if I can be of any help to him, but he's going to have no bigger supporter than myself."

The car will run with the No.43 made famous by Petty in NASCAR.

Andretti has primarily raced in NASCAR in recent years, including a stint with Petty's team, but has returned to IndyCars for the past two Indianapolis 500s,

"We have had success before in the stock cars, and we hope to have another strong run in the Indy 500," said Andretti. "I am really excited about being a part of Richard's first entry into open-wheel racing."
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#47

Post by Da Sausage »

Bwahaha, Milka Duno 16th with Newman-Haas :haha:
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#48

Post by Cheeveer »

You know that there was a race this weekend? :sarcasm:
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#49

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Was there?
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#50

Post by kals »

Yep, the first race of the season at St Pete. A pretty good race by all accounts. Ryan Briscoe won with Ryan Hunter-Rey second and Justin Wilson third. Damn shame Justin slipped back in the last ten laps, but it was still a great performance. Dan Wheldon was taken out by Robert Doornbos, Scott Dixon crashed after contact with Hideki Mutoh and Dario Franchitti came in 4th (I think!).
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#51

Post by Seppi »

What the hell is Stanton Barrett doing in IRL? He was a mobile chicane in NASCAR and is now ever worse in IRL..

He was lapped within 15 laps at St.Petes and ALWAYS getting in the way of faster cars.

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#52

Post by Ian-S »

Cheeveer wrote:You know that there was a race this weekend? :sarcasm:
there was more people at the track than watched it on TV - I'm NOT kidding either.
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#53

Post by DaleJuniorFan »

Report: IRL numbers plummet on Versus

If the numbers for Versus' first IRL telecast are any indication, it may be a long ten years for the open wheel racing league.

According to Autoracing1.com, the IRL's season opening Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg drew 233,000 viewers on Versus last Sunday, down 79% from 1.1 million viewers for last year's season opener on ESPN2.

Sunday's race was the first ever IRL telecast on Versus. Last year, the IRL and Versus agreed on a deal for the network to air races for the next ten years, replacing ESPN and ESPN2.

To put the 233,000 viewers in perspective, NHL telecasts on Versus averaged 311,000 viewers through January's All-Star break.

Source: MVN.com
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#54

Post by Tommie van Ostade »

Well, I watched the race on a Dutch channel here in Holland, so I guess that makes it +1 :) .

Never seen many oval races, lookin forward to those. Isn't it Long Beach next week?

:wave: Tommie.
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#55

Post by Ian-S »

I am very sorry if you find my posts long and boring, I like to type and often go off on a tangent.
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#56

Post by Cheeveer »

Ian-S wrote:Federal Jury acquits Castroneves
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2009/r ... ml?cnn=yes
Best news in a long time! :happy:
***Some say you should live each day like it was your last... but who wants to live each day in wild panic and extreme death anxiety?

The universe, look at the hugeness of it... it is a dizzying thought that little ol' me is the centre of it all!***
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#57

Post by Edgar Jessop »

See! It's only Formula One drivers who lie! ;)
C'est brutal mais ca marche!
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#58

Post by Ian-S »

lol, i see all the news media saying "acquits" rather than "not guilty" :haha:
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#59

Post by kals »

He's back and Power stays put.
Autosport.com wrote:Castroneves will race in Long Beach

By Jeff Olson Friday, April 17th 2009, 20:39 GMT


Helio Castroneves, acquitted earlier in the day of tax evasion charges, will race in this weekend's Long Beach IndyCar Series event, Team Penske has announced.

Will Power, who replaced Castroneves in the #3 car for winter testing and the first race of the season, will compete with the team this weekend in a third car - a #12 entry sponsored by Verizon Wireless - and will also drive that car in the Indianapolis 500, team officials said.

Castroneves was acquitted on six charges of tax evasion by a federal jury in Miami today. The jury remained deadlocked on a more serious charge of conspiracy, and that portion of the case against Castroneves was declared a mistrial. The Brazilian left Miami after the verdict and was expected to arrive in Long Beach this evening.

Penske Racing president Tim Cindric welcomed the verdict and said the team was looking forward to Castroneves' return.

"We're ecstatic with the outcome," said Cindric. "It was a very, very difficult time for all of us, in particular he and his family. We're very excited to know that he can go on with his life, business as usual. We're looking forward to having him back."

Power, who was hired before the season with the knowledge that Castroneves would get back in the car if acquitted, said he was pleased with the opportunity to compete in the Indy 500.


"This is a great opportunity for me," Power said. "This team has made me feel very welcome. It's a first-class team. I really love working with these guys, and you never know what could happen in the future."

Cindric said he had not guaranteed an Indianapolis ride for Power until Thursday night.

"It wasn't until last night that he knew he was going to be in the Indy 500," Cindric said.

"We talked about it in the beginning of this process, but that wasn't something he knew going into it. It's a big credit to him to take the approach he's taken."

In a joint press conference featuring Penske and IndyCar principles, Brian Barnhart, the president of racing operations for the Indy Racing League, echoed the team's sentiments.

"We couldn't be happier for Penske Racing, Helio and his family," Brian Barnhart said. "We look forward to having him back on the grid in Long Beach. Helio has played an integral part in the growth of the IndyCar Series, both on and off the racetrack in the past few years. He has an incredible legion of fans and is a true star in every sense of the word."

Barnhart has made a number of concessions to Penske to allow the quick transfer. Castroneves will retain the same pit stall that Power was using, and the car's tyre allocation for the weekend will be reset when Castroneves gets in the car for Saturday's practice session.

Meanwhile, Power's use of tyres on the #3 car during Friday's practice sessions will count against him when he moves to the #12 car from Saturday morning.

Barnhart also said he would allow both drivers extra practice time on Saturday to prepare. Barnhart and Cindric indicated the team had been working with the series since before the season opener to prepare for a possible sudden decision in Castroneves' case during or before a race weekend. The series even drew a qualifying position for Castroneves in the event that he was acquitted in time to qualify.

"It was good communication with Tim and Team Penske that allowed this to happen without knowing the timing of it," Barnhart said. "We're certainly happy to have Helio back in the car."

Ryan Briscoe, who joined Penske's IndyCar line-up last year, will team with Castroneves and Power for Sunday's race.

"It's very exciting news for all of us here - Helio especially," Briscoe said. "I really look forward to working with him again. We really built a strong relationship last year, so I'm looking forward to continuing that."

Cindric did not elaborate on the team's plans for Power beyond the 500 in May. He will be under contract to Team Penske, but it wasn't clear if Power would drive in select events later in the season or if he would join Penske's sportscar operation.

"He's dealt with all of the maybes and what-abouts," Cindric said. "Our position is going to be to take it a race at a time."
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#60

Post by Cheeveer »

But despite all that, Power took pole position for the Long Beach race tonight.
***Some say you should live each day like it was your last... but who wants to live each day in wild panic and extreme death anxiety?

The universe, look at the hugeness of it... it is a dizzying thought that little ol' me is the centre of it all!***
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#61

Post by kals »

Franchitti is second to Power and it is Raphael Matos in third. Wilson has kept up his good start to the season with a fourth place start.
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