May 30, 2004
HORNISH, TOYOTA VICTORY HOPES CUT SHORT
- Sam Hornish, Jr. consistently ran in the top three throughout today’s Indianapolis 500, but had his day cut short when he was caught up in an accident when another car hit Target Toyota driver Darren Manning. Hornish, who led his first Indy 500 laps today, had been running second before his last pit stop. Unfortunately, a blockage in the fuel hose forced him to have to return to the pits and dropped him to the back of the pack where he was caught up in the incident.
- Scott Dixon (Target Toyota) and Helio Castroneves (Marlboro Toyota) both earned top-10 finishes today, placing in eighth and ninth, respectively. Castroneves appeared to be on his way to contending for a possible victory when he overshot his pit and dropped from third to the tail end of the lead lap. The two-time Indianapolis 500 winner drove back through the field from 17th to earn his ninth-place finish.
- Castroneves’ ninth-place finish is his fourth straight top-10 finish here at Indy. The ninth goes along with 2001 and 2002 wins and a second-place finish a year ago.
- Five Toyota-powered cars fell out of today’s race due to accidents. A.J. Foyt IV, Larry Foyt, Marth Roth, Darren Manning and Sam Hornish, Jr. all were forced to retire after accidents.
- Race winner Buddy Rice became the first Toyota Atlantic Championship grad to win the Indianapolis 500 since Jacques Villeneuve was victorious in 1995. Fellow Toyota Atlantic grads Dan Wheldon (third) and Roger Yasukawa (10th) also placed in the top-10. Rice won the 2000 Toyota Atlantic title.
Jim Aust, Toyota vice president of motorsports: “It was terribly disappointing to see Sam Hornish Jr. get caught up in somebody else’s crash. He very well may have had the best car in the field today. After winning here a year ago, we plan to go back and do everything in our power to get back to Victory Circle here next year.”
Toyota Drivers Start/Finish
Scott Dixon 13/8
Helio Castroneves 8/9
Scott Sharp 20/13
Jeff Simmons 29/16
Tora Takagi 26/19
Richie Hearn 30/20
Sarah Fisher 19/21
Marty Roth 32/24
Darren Manning 15/25
Sam Hornish 11/26
Larry Foyt 22/32
A.J. Foyt IV 21/33
Next Race: Texas Motor Speedway, June 12, ESPN 8 p.m. EDT
May 23, 2004
PRUETT/PAPIS GIVE LEXUS FIRST PROTOTYPE WIN; MOVE INTO CHAMPIONSHIP LEAD
After dominating early, the CompUSA Lexus driven by Scott Pruett and Max Papis had to rally late in the race to take the lead on the way to winning the 6 Heures du Circuit Mont-Tremblant and give Lexus its first-ever Rolex Series Daytona Prototype victory.
Not only did Lexus earn its first victory, but with Jan Magnussen’s (Doran-Lista Racing Lexus) move from fourth to second in the last hour, it gave Lexus its first one-two finish in the process. Magnussen co-drove with Didier Theys, with the duo leading more than 30 laps in the process.
The two Lexus-powered cars led all but two of the first 134 laps, with Pruett building up a 46-second lead at one point. Back-to-back yellow flags caused the Lexus cars to finally give up the point position on Lap 135. Pruett regained the lead briefly on Lap 161, but took the lead for good on Lap 175 of the 200-lap event.
“It’s great to give Lexus its first win in endurance racing and now we’re headed in the right direction,” said Papis. “Everyone with the CompUSA Chip Ganassi Racing team is focused on one thing – winning.”
In addition to the top-two finishers, Michael Shank Racing continued its strong run with a sixth-place finish and led the race at one point. The second CompUSA Ganassi Lexus was running fourth before losing a wheel just after a re-start on the way to a 10th-place finish with Jimmy Morales and Luis Diaz. The Cegwa Sport OzExe team with Darius Grala, John Lloyd and Mike Borkowski had been challenging for a top-10 finish before a late-race incident that resulted in a 12th-place finish.
With the victory, Pruett and Papis, who also won their fourth consecutive pole on Saturday, moved into the series points lead with 135 points. In addition, Lexus closed to within six points of the Manufacturer’s Championship lead. Two Lexus-powered teams also are in the top three in the team points race. The #01 CompUSA Ganassi Racing Lexus team moves into the top spot with Michael Shank Racing in third, just eight points behind the Ganassi squad.
The Rolex Series returns to action on June 20 for the Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen at Watkins Glen. SPEED will have live coverage.
THREE MORE TOYOTAS INTO INDIANAPOLIS 500 FIELD; TOYOTA ENGINES TO POWER RACE-HIGH 12 INDY ENTRIES
Past IndyCar Series winner Richie Hearn was among three Toyota-powered qualifiers to make the field today for the 88th running of the Indianapolis 500, giving Toyota a race-high 12 entries.
Hearn will be piloting the Sam Schmidt Motorsports Toyota for the second straight year. Hearn also previously campaigned a Toyota in CART competition with Della Penna Motorsports.
The fastest of today’s Toyota qualifiers was Jeff Simmons, who qualified the Pioneer/Mo Nunn Racing Toyota with a speed of more than 214 mph. Simmons will be making his first Indianapolis 500 start. The Connecticut-native was the 2003 Pro Series runner-up and a two-time Barber-Dodge champion.
This year’s race also will mark the first ‘500’ appearance for Marty Roth (Marty Roth Racing Toyota). Both Simmons and Roth participated in Saturday’s IRL Pro Series event with Simmons leading early on his way to a runner-up finish.
Notes:
- While Toyota will supply engines for a race-high 12 Indianapolis 500 entries, the total is actually two less than a year ago when the manufacturer supplied 14 of the 33 race starters in its first run at the Brickyard.
- For the second consecutive year, two-time Indianapolis 500 winner Helio Castroneves will be the highest starting Toyota. In three starts here at the Indy 500, Castroneves has beaten 95 of the 96 other cars entered against him – with only teammate Gil de Ferran (last year) finishing ahead of him in those three starts.
- Seven Toyota Atlantic Championship grads qualified for this year’s Indianapolis 500 including the top two qualifiers, Buddy Rice and Dan Wheldon, who finished one-two in the 2000 Toyota Atlantic Championship. Sam Hornish Jr., Roger Yasukawa, Alex Barron and Felipe Giaffone also qualified last weekend, while Richie Hearn made the field today.
Toyota Indy 500 Qualifiers
8. Helio Castroneves (220.882 mph)
11. Sam Hornish Jr.
13. Scott Dixon
15. Darren Manning
19. Sarah Fisher
20. Scott Sharp
21. A.J. Foyt IV
22. Larry Foyt
26. Tora Takagi
29. Jeff Simmons
30. Richie Hearn
32. Marty Roth
May 22, 2004
PRUETT PUTS LEXUS ON POLE FOR FOURTH STRAIGHT RACE; LEXUS-POWERED PROTOTYPES TAKE FOUR OF TOP EIGHT
Scott Pruett set a new track record in driving his No. 01 CompUSA-sponsored Lexus to the pole position for the fourth consecutive race in preparation for Sunday’s 6 Heures du Circuit Mont-Tremblant.
Pruett will co-drive with Max Papis in tomorrow’s six-hour event. The duo will be joined by three other Lexus-powered prototypes among the top eight qualifiers for the race.
"Our fourth pole position in a row is very exciting, especially coming here for the first time," Pruett said. "The only (driver) that has been here before is Max (Papis). To come out of the box in Mont-Tremblant and do so well is outstanding. This is a wonderful circuit, but a very technical circuit. We had a little incident yesterday and I've got to hand it to the CompUSA guys, they turned things around really quick. They got the car right back out there and never missed a beat, so we were able to continue on with our development. Winning this pole position is a huge statement for the team. We had a few setbacks during the weekend and we rose right above it. Now if we can back up all these poles with a win, we'll be in great shape."
In addition to the pole effort, Jan Magnussen qualified fourth in the Doran-Lista Racing Lexus and will team with veteran Didier Theys. Lexus prototypes also qualified seventh and eighth as Jimmy Morales and Luis Diaz’ No. 02 CompUSA Lexus qualified seventh, and the Michael Shank Racing Lexus campaigned by Oswaldo Negri and Burt Frisselle will start eighth.
Making just its second start of the season, the Cegwa Sport OzExe Lexus rounded out the Lexus-powered entries in 16th. Darius Grala and John Lloyd will join team newcomer Mike Borkowski in the entry.
The green flag is scheduled to fall for Sunday’s race at 11 a.m. EDT. SPEED Channel will provide five hours of live coverage of the event.
May 18, 2004
LEXUS HEADS NORTH LOOKING FOR FIRST PROTOTYPE WIN
After knocking on victory’s door in the first three races of the season, the Lexus Grand American Daytona Prototype effort will head north of the border to Mont-Tremblant, Quebec, looking to secure its first victory in the 6 Heures du Circuit Mont-Tremblant.
In the season’s first three events, three different Lexus-powered cars have earned podium finishes. Doran-Lista Racing finished second at Daytona; Michael Shank Racing placed third at Miami and the #01 Ganassi Racing CompUSA Lexus registered a runner-up finish at Phoenix.
This weekend, four different teams will vie to become the first to win with Lexus power at Mont-Tremblant. The Ganassi Racing team appeared to be headed to victory in each of the last two races only to see misfortune come their way. The #01 CompUSA entry of Scott Pruett led at Miami before a late-race incident and then bounced back to lead more than half the race at Phoenix before an ill-timed yellow cost the team a shot at victory. Pruett and Papis hold the distinction of having won the pole for all three races this season. They’ll be joined by teammates Luis Diaz and Jimmy Morales in the #02 CompUSA Lexus.
While the Ganassi team may have come closest to winning, the Michael Shank Racing team is the highest Lexus-powered team in the point standings. MSR heads to Mont-Tremblant in third place, just six points out of the series lead. Coming off a successful two-day test at Watkins Glen with drivers Oswaldo Negri and Burt Frisselle, team owner Michael Shank has high hopes as the schedules shifts to some of the larger road course circuits.
"The Lexus Doran package is really strong on the longer tracks," Shank said. "The Lexus really likes to stretch its legs, and that's going to be important as we race through the summer."
Didier Theys and Jan Magnussen will be behind the wheel of the Doran-Lista Racing Lexus looking to regain the form that carried the team to a runner-up finish in the season-opening Daytona 24 Hours. The duo also registered a strong effort in Miami only to be sidelined due to a late-race incident while battling for the lead.
While competing in just its second race of the season, Cegwa Sport offers up one thing that the other Lexus teams lack – a past Daytona Prototype winner and the defending race champion. Mike Borkowski, the 2003 series runner-up and defending race champion at Mont-Tremblant, will join team drivers Darius Grala and John Lloyd in the OzEXE/Lexus.
SPEED will provide five hours of live coverage for the 6 Heures du Circuit Mont-Tremblant, beginning at Sunday at 11 a.m. (EDT).
May 15, 2004
CASTRONEVES LEADS TOYOTA IN INDY QUALIFYING
Two-time Indianapolis 500-winner Helio Castroneves (Marlboro Toyota) placed eighth as the fastest Toyota in today’s Pole Day qualifying at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway for the 88th running of Indianapolis 500.
Castroneves averaged 220.882 mph on his four lap run to lead a contingent of 8 Toyotas that qualified for the May 30 race. Sam Hornish Jr., Castroneves’ teammate at Marlboro Team Penske was the next highest Toyota in 11th.
Notes:
- Larry Foyt (Conseco Toyota) qualified for his first Indianapolis 500. He becomes the third Foyt family member to qualify for the race – joining his father, the legendary four-time champion A.J. Foyt, and his nephew, A.J. Foyt IV.
- Darren Manning (Target Toyota) also qualified for this first Indianapolis 500.
- The top two qualifiers for this year's Indianapolis 500 finished one-two in the 2000 Toyota Atlantic Championship. Indianapolis 500 pole winner Buddy Rice won the 2000 Toyota Atlantic Championship, with today’s second-place qualifier Dan Wheldon the runner-up for the 2000 title. Two more TAC grads, Sam Hornish Jr. and Roger Yasukawa, qualified in Row 4.
- Two Toyota-powered cars did not complete qualifying runs today. Both Tora Takagi and Marty Roth are expected to make qualifying runs on Sunday. In addition, Toyota has the potential to supply up to two more cars for second-weekend qualifying.
Quotes:
Lee White, Toyota Racing Development senior vice president: “Obviously, it wasn’t a great day for us. There have been so many variables this month and I expect that to continue through the next couple twoweeks. I’m not sure that we’ve seen everyone’s best, yet.”
Toyota Indy 500 Qualifiers
8. Helio Castroneves (220.882 mph)
11. Sam Hornish Jr.
13. Scott Dixon
15. Darren Manning
19. Sarah Fisher
20. Scott Sharp
21. A.J. Foyt IV
22. Larry Foyt
May 13, 2004
CASTRONEVES, TOYOTA FASTEST AT INDY AS POLE DAY NEARS
- Helio Castroneves (Marlboro Toyota) became the first driver to top the daily time sheets for a second time as he registered Thursday’s fastest lap in preparation for Saturday’s Pole Day for the 88th running of the Indianapolis 500. In addition, Castroneves has now finished in the top-two three times in the five practice days and in the top-four on four of five days. The two-time Indianapolis 500 winner has the greatest finishing record of any driver in ‘500’ history with two wins and a second in three races.
- With Helio Castroneves finishing on top today, it marks the third time in five practice days that a Toyota-powered driver has finished the day as fastest overall. Scott Dixon led Sunday’s session, while Castroneves has now topped the time charts on Monday and Thursday.
- Sam Hornish Jr. (Marlboro Toyota) placed third overall today – his top practice position of the week and his fourth straight day in the top-10 overall. The two-time IndyCar Series champ finished just .0368 behind his teammate Helio Castroneves for the top spot.
Quotes:
Helio Castroneves, #3 Marlboro Toyota, Marlboro Team Penske: “I think we made some definite improvements in the car today. After the rain, the track was not as fast today, but we were able to make some gains and go faster.”
Toyota Drivers Indy Day 5
1. #3 Helio Castroneves
3. #6 Sam Hornish Jr.
14. #1T Darren Manning
21. #8 Scott Sharp
23. #12T Tora Takagi
24. #14 A.J. Foyt IV
25. #41 Larry Foyt
26. #12T Tora Takagi
27. #25 Marty Roth
28. #39 Sarah Fisher
Practice continues Friday, May 14 at 12 noon EDT/11 a.m. CDT
May 12, 2004
DIXON FASTEST TOYOTA AS INDY PRACTICE CONTINUES
- Scott Dixon turned in one of the fastest laps of the day with a 220.9 mph lap – good for fifth overall and the fastest Toyota of the day. Making Dixon’s lap even more impressive was that he registered his top lap without the aid of a “tow.” Today’s performance marks the second time in four days that Dixon has been the fastest Toyota on the track and the fourth straight day that Dixon has been in the overall top-10 with a first, second, 10th and fifth in the first four days of practice for the Indianapolis 500.
- For the third-consecutive day, Sam Hornish Jr. (Marlboro Toyota) placed in the top-10 overall, despite spending much of the day conducting long runs. Hornish placed ninth overall today after placing sixth yesterday and fourth on Monday. He missed Sunday’s opening day due to a flu bug. The two-time IndyCar Series champ logged 99 laps today in his primary car – the second-highest of any driver.
- Helio Castroneves (Marlboro Toyota) placed in the top 10 for the fourth consecutive day with the 10th spot overall. The two-time Indianapolis 500 winner had placed in the top four overall on each of the first three days with a first, second and a fourth. He will be trying to improve upon the greatest finishing record in the history of the Indianapolis 500 with two wins and a second in three races.
- Rookie Marty Roth ran extensive long runs today and completed the highest number of laps of any driver this month with 128 – good for 320 miles on the day.
Toyota Drivers Indy Day 4
5. #1 Scott Dixon
9. #6 Sam Hornish Jr.
10. #3 Helio Castroneves
16. #10 Darren Manning
18. #10T Darren Manning
19. #8 Scott Sharp
25. #12T Tora Takagi
27. #39 Sarah Fisher
28. #25 Marty Roth
29. #39T Sarah Fisher
Practice continues Thursday, May 12 at 12 noon EDT/11 a.m. CDT
May 11, 2004
CASTRONEVES TOPS TOYOTA CONTINGENT IN INDY PRACTICE
- Helio Castroneves (Marlboro Toyota) was the top Toyota-powered car for the second consecutive day as he led three Toyota drivers into the top 10 in Tuesday’s practice for the 88th running of the Indianapolis 500. The two-time Indianapolis 500 winner was fourth overall on the day. Castroneves has now placed in the top four in each of the first three days with a second, first and now a fourth. He will be trying to improve upon the greatest finishing record in the history of the Indianapolis 500 with two wins and a second in three races.
- Sam Hornish, Castroneves’ Marlboro Team Penske teammate, placed sixth overall and was the second-fastest Toyota. After missing Sunday’s opening day due to a flu bug, Hornish has now placed in the top six on each of his two days on-track. Hornish won the season-opening Toyota Indy 300 at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
- After placing first and second overall on the first two days of Indy practice, Scott Dixon spent a portion of the day sidelined by mechanical difficulties, yet, still placed in the top 10 for the third straight day with a 10th overall.
Toyota Drivers Indy Day 3
4. #3 Helio Castroneves
6. #6 Sam Hornish Jr.
10. #1T Scott Dixon
13. #10 Darren Manning
19. #8 Scott Sharp
21. #1 Scott Dixon
23. #39 Sarah Fisher
25. #12T Tora Takagi
26. #14 A.J. Foyt IV
28. #8T Scott Sharp
29. #41 Larry Foyt
30. #25 Marty Roth
31. #6T Sam Hornish, Jr.
Practice continues Wednesday, May 12 at 12 noon EDT/11 a.m. CDT
May 10, 2004
TOYOTAS RUN 1-2 FOR SECOND STRAIGHT DAY AT INDY; CASTRONEVES CELEBRATES HIS 29th BIRTHDAY WITH FAST TIME AT SPEEDWAY
- For the second consecutive day, Toyota-powered cars topped the time charts at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in practice for the 88th running of the Indianapolis 500. Swapping the top two spots from yesterday, Helio Castroneves (Marlboro Toyota) and Scott Dixon (Target Toyota) placed first and second with Castroneves becoming the first driver this month to exceed the 220 mph mark.
- It was only fitting for Castroneves to take the top spot in today’s practice as the two-time Indianapolis 500 winner celebrated his 29th birthday. His celebration plans include a quiet dinner with family.
- After registering the fastest time yesterday, Scott Dixon spent the majority of the day in the top spot and was just minutes away from making it consecutive days on top before Helio Castroneves logged the fastest time of the in the waning minutes. Dixon, the defending IndyCar Series champion, opted not to put new tires on and run in the last half hour.
- After spending yesterday in sick bay with the flu, two-time IndyCar Series champion Sam Hornish (Marlboro Toyota) registered the fourth-fastest time of the day to give Toyota three of the top four.
- After extensive long runs on Sunday, Scott Sharp (Delphi Toyota) turned in another strong performance to rank ninth on the day, giving Toyota five of the top nine for the day.
- Despite losing valuable track time to the four-hour rain delay, Larry Foyt registered his first official practice laps at the Speedway today with a total of 12. Larry’s presence makes three generations of Foyt’s involved in the team’s efforts this year with father, A.J., running the A.J. Foyt Enterprises team and nephew A.J. Foyt IV serving as Larry’s teammate.
Quotes:
Helio Castroneves, “#3 Marlboro Toyota: “Everything’s going good. The Toyota engine is running well, but it’s still early. We just need to maintain our patience and focus. The track changed at least a mile and a half slower after the rain. (On his late laps) I didn’t want to go out with a lot of drivers. I wanted to get a clean lap. We got a little bit of tow from Sarah (Fisher) coming off Turn Four to start the lap, but most of the lap was by ourselves.”
Toyota Drivers Indy Day 2
1. #3 Helio Castroneves
2. #1 Scott Dixon
4. #6 Sam Hornish Jr.
9. #8 Scott Sharp
12. #10 Darren Manning
22. #6T Sam Hornish Jr.
23. #12T Tora Takagi
26. #14 A.J. Foyt IV
27. #39 Sarah Fisher
28. #41 Larry Foyt
29. #25 Marty Roth
30. #12 Tora Takagi
Practice continues Tuesday, May 11 at 12 noon EDT/11 a.m. CDT
May 09, 2004
TOYOTAS TOP INDY OPENING DAY; DIXON, CASTRONEVES 1-2 IN PREPARATION FOR 88th INDIANAPOLIS 500
- The Toyota-powered cars of Scott Dixon (Target Toyota) and two-time Indianapolis 500 winner Helio Castroneves (Marlboro Toyota) topped the speed charts on the opening day of practice for the 2004 Indianapolis 500.
- Scott Dixon and Helio Castroneves were the only drivers to go over the 219 miles-per-hour mark on the day. The two Toyota-powered drivers were more than a mile an hour faster than the next highest driver. Dixon is the reigning IndyCar Series champion, while Castroneves is looking to become the first driver in history to win three Indianapolis 500s in four years.
- In addition to the top two, Indianapolis 500 rookie Darren Manning also placed in the top-10 overall today with a 10th. Manning comes into Indy with three consecutive top-six finishes, including a fourth at the most recent race at Motegi, Japan.
- Two-time IndyCar Series champion Sam Hornish (Marlboro Toyota) sat out today’s opening day practice due to illness. Hornish registered the fastest time on each day of the two-day Indy Open Test held last week.
Quotes:
Scott Dixon, #1 Target Toyota: “We were just getting up to speed today. I was surprised at how much grip we had today compared to the open test. Toyota has made some great gains in the engine and we expect even more to come. I still think we’ll hit 224 or 225 (in qualifying). The track should continue to get faster and I’d expect all the manufacturers to make some gains. The IRL has done a terrific job with the amount of downforce they’ve taken away.”
Helio Castroneves, “#3 Marlboro Toyota: “We started the way we left the open test (Penske drivers were 1-2 during the test). It’s just a little hotter compared to the test. We need to keep focused as we get closer to qualifying. The Toyota guys are working hard to fix all the little things with the new engine. On Friday, we’ll see what has worked all week and then we’ll start to trim it out. You need to make your move at the right time.”
Toyota Drivers Opening Day
1. #1 Scott Dixon
2. #3 Helio Castroneves
10. #10 Darren Manning
12. #1T Scott Dixon
16. #3T Helio Castroneves
17. #8 Scott Sharp
18. #39 Sarah Fisher
26. #12T Tora Takagi
28. #12 Tora Takagi
29. #25 Marty Roth
30. #10T Darren Manning
33. #14 A.J. Foyt IV
Practice continues Monday, May 10 at 12 noon EDT/11 a.m. CDT