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Filed under: IRL, Danica Patrick

NEWTON, Iowa (AP) -- Tony Kanaan overtook Helio Castroneves with 10 laps left and held on to win the Iowa 250 Sunday.

It was the first win since 2008 for Kanaan, who last took the checkered flag in Richmond two years ago. Kanaan had crashed in each of his first three starts at Iowa, but he zipped past Castroneves on lap 240 and cruised to victory by over four seconds.

"I've had three years to think about why I didn't finish. When I came here people kept reminding me of that," said Kanaan, who led for 62 laps. "I never finished, and then I finished. I finished first, so know we have a different story."

Castroneves finished second and E.J. Viso was a career-best third. Penske teammates Ryan Briscoe and pole winner Will Power rounded out the top five.

Danica Patrick finished 10th. Dario Franchitti, a two-time winner in Iowa, had mechanical issues with 50 laps left and finished 18th.

Kanaan started the race 15th, but he moved up quickly and took the lead about halfway through the race. Franchitti took the lead away from Kanaan with a quick pit stop 70 laps from the finish, but his quest for a third win in three starts at Iowa fell apart soon thereafter.

Castroneves moved past Franchitti for the lead, and Franchitti soon went back to pit row when his gear box got stuck. That left the race up to Kanaan and Franchitti, and Kanaan easily moved past Castroneves to pick up his 14th career IndyCar Series win.

 

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Filed under: Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Chase for the Sprint Cup, FanHouse Exclusive, Indianapolis 500

INDIANAPOLIS -- A still-smiling Chip Ganassi stared down at the scene on the ground as the private jet we rode in ripped toward the sky at such a steep incline it was as if his beloved Indianapolis Motor Speedway below was tugging him back for more.

Less than an hour earlier, a massive crowd of some 400,000 had witnessed the Target Chip Ganassi Racing team win its second Indianapolis 500 in three years, and from the sky, the traffic looked like a maze flowing from the legendary speedway. Fans were still partying in the parking lots, fully satisfied they'd gotten their money's worth with Sunday's thrilling race and historic finish.

Less content was the 52-year-old Ganassi, who had just settled into his seat for the 56-minute plane ride toward the day's next order of business: the Coca-Cola 600 NASCAR race outside Charlotte, N.C. -- 600 more miles of competition 429 miles away.

Earlier, in the moments after his driver Dario Franchitti claimed racing's most sought-after checkered flag, Ganassi walked down Indianapolis' pit road for an overwhelming offering of congratulatory handshakes, hugs and pats on the back. Among the first to greet Ganassi was his great rival, Roger Penske.

With this victory, Ganassi had become the first race team owner in history to win the Indianapolis 500 and Daytona 500 in the same year -- a feat not even the sport's standard-bearer, 15-time Indy winner Penske, could claim.

And yet even before the significance of this historic accomplishment could set in -- before he'd tasted a drop of the Indy winner's milk -- Ganassi stopped outside victory circle, leaned over and shouted to me above the celebration, "We're going to Charlotte! I've got a new boost of energy and we've got another race to win.''

 

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Filed under: Indianapolis Motor Speedway, IRL, Indianapolis 500

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) -- The Indianapolis 500 victory dinner quickly became a tribute to Dario Franchitti's dominance.

Franchitti led 155 of the 200 laps in his Target Chip Ganassi Racing IndyCar racer. He passed previous winner Helio Castroneves early, then remained in control for much of Sunday's race.

"I think your push to pass button must have been stuck on," Will Power told the two-time winner.

Franchitti earned $2,752,055 for his win. (Typically, car owners such as Ganassi keep about half the purse winnings, but also pay the driver a hefty salary).

"That's a lot of money in any currency," the Scottish native said.

His earnings were part of an overall purse of $13,592,815. The paychecks were announced Monday at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

 

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Filed under: Indianapolis Motor Speedway, IRL, Indianapolis 500

Dario Franchitti joined the elusive club of two-time Indy 500 champions on Sunday, winning a race he led for most of the way, including all but 12 of the first 146 laps.

It's been a spectacular run for Franchiti, who won last year's IndyCar series title and now is an Indy 500 winner again. After kissing the bricks one more time, Franchitti addressed the media.

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Filed under: Indianapolis 500

It was a day that included Dario Franchitti winning his second career Indy 500, Danica Patrick racing to another top ten finish and Tony Kanaan coming from the back of the pack to almost win the race. A great day of story lines and racing in Indianapolis as FanHouse TV's Holly Cain and Terence Moore discuss.

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Filed under: Indianapolis Motor Speedway, IRL, Indianapolis 500

With Dario Franchitti's victory on Sunday, Chip Ganassi became the first owner to win the Indy 500 and the Daytona 500 in the same year. Ganassi, on his way to Charlotte to participate in the Coca Cola 600, made a pit stop to discuss his historic day with FanHouse TV's Holly Cain.

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Filed under: Indianapolis Motor Speedway, IRL, Indianapolis 500

INDIANAPOLIS -- In the end, Dario didn't run out of gas, a bunch of his competitors nearly did, and Ashley couldn't stay in her shoes.

Everything else surrounding the 94th running of the Indianapolis 500 on Sunday prior to the final couple of laps was a blur -- sort of like Dario Franchitti's No. 10 car for most of the steamy afternoon.

This was fun. This also was scary.

With one lap remaining and his car threatening to gasp any moment courtesy of a sprinkling of gas left in his tank, Franchitti's likeness on the Borg-Warner Trophy was guaranteed for a second time in four Indy races after a crash in the north chute. It was a brutal one, but it wasn't fatal. It featured Mike Conway suffering just a leg injury despite his sparking, flipping and exploding ride flying high before slamming into the fence.

So this mostly was vintage Indy -- as in drama.

As in, it's about time.

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Filed under: Indianapolis Motor Speedway, IRL, Indianapolis 500

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) -- One lap to go, running on empty and a car bearing down on his tail.

After having the dominant car and the perfect game plan, Dario Franchitti still needed more Sunday -- one break to win his second Indianapolis 500.

He got it in the form of a spectacular, airborne crash that brought out a yellow flag and allowed him to cross the line with a scant 1.6 gallons of fuel left.

That 1.6 gallons left him holding a quart of milk, a winner at the Brickyard for the second time in four years.

"Still running," the winner told his crew over the radio as he crossed the finish line, while wreckers were moving out to scoop up debris from an accident that sent Mike Conway into the wall and to the hospital with a broken left leg.

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Filed under: Indianapolis Motor Speedway, IRL, Indianapolis 500

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by FanHouse NewswireKANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) -- Waiting for the final green flag after a caution a few laps from the finish, Scott Dixon jokingly asked his crew if he could save some horsepower boosts for the Indianapolis 500 later this month.

Obviously, the answer was no.

The way Dixon kicked off IndyCar's oval season, he might not need them anyway.

Making few changes to a fast-off-the-truck car, Dixon cruised to his second straight IndyCar Series victory at Kansas Speedway on Saturday, firmly placing himself atop the list of favorites for the big race on the bricks.

Scott Dixon Back on Top as IndyCar Moves to Ovals originally appeared on Motorsports FanHouse on Sat, 01 May 2010 15:51:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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