September 28, 2004
LEXUS DRIVERS HOLD SLIM CHAMPIONSHIP LEAD HEADING INTO VIR 400
With just three races remaining in the title chase, Lexus-powered drivers Scott Pruett and Max Papis hold an eight-point lead over their closest challengers heading into this weekend’s Grand American Rolex Series VIR 400 Presented by SunTrust at the Virginia International Raceway.
Pruett and Papis’ #01 CompUSA Lexus is just one of three Lexus-powered teams currently in the top-five in the team standings. They’re joined by the #6 Michael Shank Racing Lexus and the #27 Doran-Lista Racing Lexus. All three teams are still mathematically in the title chase.
In addition to the team and drivers championships, Lexus is currently in second-place in the Manufacturer’s Championship in its first season of Daytona Prototype competition, only five points out of the top spot after winning four of the last six races.
Yet, when the prototypes take to the track this weekend, it’s Pruett and Papis who will be in the catbird seat. The duo have utilized three victories and three second-place finishes to maintain the series points lead since the fourth race of the season at Mont-Tremblant. With just three races remaining, a win and a pair of second-place finishes would clinch the series title.
While Papis and Pruett were the pre-season favorites for the title, Michael Shank Racing (MSR) has certainly snuck up on the competition in its first season of sports car racing. The little team from Columbus, Ohio, has earned a pair of top-five finishes in the last two races by Oswaldo Negri and Burt Frisselle to keep their championship hopes alive. For the season, the team has registered eight top-eight finishes in nine races.
Right behind the MSR team in fifth-place is Doran-Lista Racing. Doran-Lista heads to VIR with a new driver as former Formula One driver Andrea Montermini will join lead driver Didier Theys behind the wheel of the team’s #27 Lexus for the next two races. Montermini had 28 Formula One starts from 1994 through 1996 and also has campaigned in CART, as well as at Le Mans and the Rolex 24. This will be Montermini’s second stint with the team as he co-drove to three victories with Doran-Lista in 1997.
Jimmy Morales and Luis Diaz make up the fourth Lexus-powered entry in the #02 CompUSA Ganassi team car to Pruett and Papis. They’re coming off a strong fourth-place finish at Homestead – the pair’s fourth top-four finish of the season.
Qualifying is set for Saturday at 1:05 p.m. EDT and Sunday’s VIR 400 Presented by SunTrust can be seen live on SPEED beginning at 12 noon.
FAST FACTS - TOYOTA INDY 400
Oct. 3, 2004, 3 p.m. EDT on ESPN
California Speedway
200 laps on the 2-mile oval for 400 miles
TOYOTA AND SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA MOTORSPORTS – Heading into this weekend’s Toyota Indy 400, no corporate body has had a greater impact on the Southern California motorsports scene over the last 30 years than Toyota.
Toyota has served as the title or presenting sponsor of the track’s open-wheel race at the California Speedway, as well as serving as the track’s “Official Vehicle” for all events, since the track opened in 1997. In addition to the eight years of partnership with the Fontana oval, Toyota also has been involved with the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach for each of the event’s 30 years – including 25 years as the title sponsor. Rounding out its sponsorship of Southern California racing events, Toyota will sponsor the second annual Toyota All-Star Showdown NASCAR event at the Irwindale Speedway, Nov 11-13.
Of course, the manufacturer’s motorsports involvement in the area extends past sponsorship activities. Toyota Racing Development, U.S.A., is based in Orange County, Calif., and provides all the Toyota engines used for two series that will be on the track this weekend, the Indy Racing League and the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. The TRD engines are the only U.S.-designed and built engines in American open-wheel racing today.
POLE STREAK – Toyota will look for its third consecutive Indy Racing League pole this weekend at the Toyota Indy 400. Helio Castroneves (Marlboro Toyota) won the pole at Nazareth and Chicago. After powering his Toyota to the top spot here a year ago, the two-time Indianapolis 500 winner will not only shoot for a third straight series pole, but also a second consecutive pole at Fontana. A pole this weekend would leave Castroneves just one shy of the IndyCar Series record of four set by Billy Boat. He has a total of three poles already this season.
LET’S PLAY TWO – While Ernie Banks may have coined the phrase, Toyota’s motorsports program will be living it as the IRL and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series combine this weekend for the fourth of five double-headers this year. A Toyota Tundra driven by Travis Kvapil was victorious in the most recent double at Fontana’s sister track in Michigan. This season’s final double-header will be held on the last weekend of the IndyCar season at Texas (Oct. 16-17). The truck race will be the Saturday feature event this weekend.
CALIFORNIA WINNERS – Toyota has one California Speedway victory to its credit with Cristiano da Matta winning the 2001 CART race. The manufacturer placed second at the track last year when Scott Dixon (Target Toyota) was edged out by now Toyota-pilot Sam Hornish Jr., who has won each of the first two IndyCar Series races run in Fontana.
The fast two-mile oval also was the site of a couple of historic events by Toyota and its teams. Scott Pruett won Toyota’s first-ever CART pole position at the track in Fall 1999, while Marlboro Team Penske set the all-time closed course speed record (241.428 mph) with Gil de Ferran in qualifying for the 2000 CART event.
THREE TOYOTAS IN TOP-10 IN POINTS RACE – Heading into this weekend, three Toyota-powered drivers continue to rank in the top 10 in points. Helio Castroneves (Marlboro Toyota) remains in fourth-place, while his Marlboro Team Penske teammate Sam Hornish Jr. is seventh. Darren Manning (Target Toyota) is currently 10th.
Toyota IndyCar Series Driver Line-Up and Position Entering Toyota Indy 400
Car # Driver Car Season Points Standing
#3 Helio Castroneves Marlboro Toyota (Dallara) 4th
#6 Sam Hornish Jr. Marlboro Toyota (Dallara) 7th (Won Homestead)
#10 Darren Manning Target Toyota (Panoz/G-Force) 10th
#1 Scott Dixon Target Toyota (Panoz/G-Force) 11th
#8 Scott Sharp Delphi Toyota (Dallara) 14th
#12 Tora Takagi Pioneer Toyota (Dallara) 15th
#14 A.J. Foyt IV Conseco Toyota (Dallara) 18th
“Quotes”
Jim Aust, Toyota vice president of motorsports: “Every race is important for us, but the Toyota Indy 400 obviously means a little bit more. Not only do we sponsor the event, but it’s also our hometown race with both Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., and TRD headquartered here in Southern California. We’ve made some good progress recently and hopefully that will translate to the race track this weekend in Fontana.”
September 19, 2004
DISAPPOINTING FINISH TO PROMISING DAY FOR LEXUS AT GRAND-AMERICAN MIAMI 250
After leading much of the day, hopes for a Lexus victory in today’s Grand-American Rolex Series Miami 250 were dashed when Scott Pruett’s CompUSA Lexus apparently hit a patch of oil heading into Turn One, spun and went skidding off the track while battling for the lead with just 12 laps remaining. The race was eventually won by former Toyota Sebring 12 Hours winner Andy Wallace and teammate Milka Duno.
Pruett’s bad luck cleared the way for his Ganassi Racing CompUSA teammates Luis Diaz and Jimmy Morales to finish as the top-placing Lexus entry in fourth place, just one spot ahead of the Michael Shank Racing duo of Oswaldo Negri and Burt Frisselle. Didier Theys and Kelly Collins were seventh in the Doran-Lista Racing Lexus. Despite falling two laps down, Pruett recovered to finish 10th as every Lexus-powered entry finished the day in the top 10.
The late-race misfortune has shrunk Pruett and co-driver Max Papis’ championship points lead to just eight with three races remaining. The incident was a serious blow to Lexus’ championship fortunes as well. The manufacturer entered today’s race in the championship lead and could have maintained the points lead with a second today. Unfortunately, the fourth-place finish drops Lexus five points off the pace in second.
The day started off on a high note with Papis immediately moving into the lead after starting from the pole position. Despite sweltering 95 degree heat, the Italian stretched out as much as 15.5-second lead in the early going. The only time his #01 Lexus would relinquish the top spot was under yellow caution-flag pit stops through the first half of the race.
In addition to Papis and Pruett’s run at the front, the Ganassi team car of Morales and Diaz also took a turn leading the pack late in the event on their way to their fourth top-four finish in the last seven races. The pair might have logged the drive of the day after falling a lap down early after being tagged from behind and subsequently pitting for repairs.
The fifth-place showing by Negri and Frisselle marks their second consecutive top-five finish and keeps Michael Shank Racing firmly in fourth-place in the team championship. Today’s result is the team’s eighth top-eight finish in nine races this season.
The VIR 400 presented by SunTrust, round 10 of the 12-race championship, is scheduled for October 3 at Virginia International Raceway. The race will be shown live on SPEED beginning at noon eastern.
September 13, 2004
LEXUS LOOKS TO EXTEND GRAND-AM LEAD AT HOMESTEAD
On the strength of four wins in the last five races, Lexus will take a two-point lead into this weekend’s Miami 250 Grand-American Rolex Series Daytona Prototype race at the Homestead-Miami Speedway.
“The car and the engine have evolved a lot since we were at Homestead early in the year,” said Max Papis, co-driver of the series leading #01 CompUSA Lexus. “I'm very excited to see all of the improvement. We should definitely be better, but the others have not been standing still, so as usual, it will be close competition.”
With three wins and a pair of seconds in their last six races, Papis and teammate Scott Pruett have opened up a 19-point lead in the driver’s championship with four races remaining. In addition to both leading in points (244), the Lexus-powered duo also have started seven of eight races from the pole and have led almost 150 more laps than their next closest competitor. Don’t expect any changes in strategy from the Ganassi teammates.
“The race in Homestead will be the same as all our other races,” said Papis. “We have one goal and that is winning.”
After a win in the most recent Rolex Series round at Watkins Glen, Didier Theys and the Doran-Lista #27 Lexus team plan to keep fighting toward the championship as well. Theys has moved up to fourth-place in the driver’s title fight and is just 21 points out of second. He’s expected to team with Jan Magnussen at Homestead. Magnussen has a win, two seconds and a fifth in five races this season.
Another Lexus-powered championship contender comes from Michael Shank Racing (MSR). The “little team that can” currently sits fourth overall in the team championship after a team-best second-place finish at Watkins Glen. Young drivers Burt Frisselle and Oswaldo Negri, who finished third at Homestead in February, remain behind the wheel for the first-year sports car team. MSR has registered seven top-eight finishes in eight races this season.
Rounding out the Lexus-powered entrants are Jimmy Morales and Luis Diaz in the second Ganassi entry, the #02 CompUSA Lexus. With three top-four finishes this season, they’ve shown the speed to be competitive for the victory on any given weekend.
The two-day event will feature practice and qualifying on Saturday with Sunday’s Miami 250 to be televised live on SPEED beginning at 11:30 a.m. (EDT).
September 12, 2004
HORNISH LEADS FOUR TOYOTAS IN TOP 10 AT CHICAGO
- Sam Hornish Jr. (Marlboro Toyota) led four Toyotas in the top 10 with a sixth-place finish in today’s Delphi Indy 300 at the Chicagoland Speedway. Scott Dixon (Target Toyota) finished seventh, Scott Sharp (Delphi Toyota) was ninth and Helio Castroneves (Marlboro Toyota) was 10th. Adrian Fernandez won the race by just .00716 seconds.
- Helio Castroneves’ 10th-place finish is his 11th top-10 finish in 14 races this season.
- Sam Hornish Jr.’s sixth-place finish gives him seven top-10 finishes this season.
- Defending IRL champion Scott Dixon registered his eighth top-10 finish of the season with a seventh today.
- Darren Manning (Target Toyota) was running in the top five late in the race before being involved in an incident as another car came down on him and made contact ending his day on Lap 185.
- Three Toyota-powered drivers continue to rank in the top 10 in points. Helio Castroneves (Marlboro Toyota) extended his advantage for fourth-place to 13 points as the highest Toyota. His Marlboro Team Penske teammate Sam Hornish Jr. dropped to seventh-place, while Darren Manning fell to 10th after his early retirement.
- Scott Sharp (Delphi Toyota) earned his fifth top-10 finish of the year with a ninth in competing in his 96th IndyCar Series race and his 88th consecutive event – both IndyCar Series records.
Driver, Start/FinishSam Hornish 7/6
Scott Dixon 14/7
Scott Sharp 13/9
Helio Castroneves 1/10
Tora Takagi 21/13
Darren Manning 11/15
A.J. Foyt 6/16
Next Race: Toyota Indy 400, California Speedway, Oct. 3, 3:00 p.m., ET, ESPN
September 11, 2004
CASTRONEVES GIVES TOYOTA SECOND STRAIGHT POLE
- Helio Castroneves put his Marlboro Toyota on the pole for a second consecutive race in qualifying for Sunday’s Delphi Indy 300 at the Chicagoland Speedway. The pole is the third of the season for Castroneves.
- Today’s pole is Toyota’s 14th in 30 IndyCar Series races and its third of the 2004 campaign.
- Helio Castroneves’ pole position is his third of the season and the seventh of his IndyCar Series career – six of those coming with Toyota power over the last two seasons.
- A.J. Foyt IV (Conseco Toyota) earned a career-best sixth in qualifying today – the 20-year-old’s first top-10 qualifying effort in an IndyCar. His previous best had been an 11th.
- Sam Hornish Jr. (Marlboro Toyota) made it three Toyota-powered drivers in the top seven. - He’s qualified in the top seven in seven of the last eight races where qualifying has taken place. Hornish won a photo-finish victory here last season over Scott Dixon and Bryan Herta in winning his second straight Delphi Indy 300. Hornish has two wins and a second in three races here and also won a Toyota Atlantic Championship race at the old Chicago Motor Speedway.
- Scott Sharp (Delphi Toyota) qualified for his 96th IndyCar Series race and his 88th consecutive event – both IndyCar Series records.
Helio Castroneves: “We’re definitely moving in the right direction. Today was a great combination between Marlboro Team Penske and Toyota. Now we need to be first in the race tomorrow.”
Toyota Chicago Qualifying:
1. Helio Castroneves
6. A.J. Foyt IV
7. Sam Hornish Jr.
11. Darren Manning
13. Scott Sharp
14. Scott Dixon
21. Tora Takagi
Delphi Indy 300, Chicagoland Speedway, Sept. 12, 12:30 EDT, ABC
September 08, 2004
HIRE*A*HERO JOB PROGRAM FOR VETERANS TO GET NASCAR TREATMENT
Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc., and Bill Davis Racing announced today the No. 22 Toyota Tundra of Bill Lester will carry a special “Hire*A*Hero” logo at the Kroger 200 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race at Richmond International Raceway on Sept. 9. The new Hire*A*Hero program will help the men and women of the various military branches search a special Web site for job opportunities at Toyota and Lexus dealerships throughout the U.S.
Hire*A*Hero is open to all of the service branches, including the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard and National Guard. It allows members of the military to search specific areas of the country for employment information at more than 1,400 Toyota and Lexus dealerships, and both corporate and manufacturing facilities. The Hire*A*Hero Web site is accessible from both www.toyota.com/hero and www.lexus.com/hero, and it will be linked from various member-support Web sites associated with the military branches. Nearly 600 jobs were listed at the Hire*A*Hero Web site when it launched.
“NASCAR racing is very popular among our military forces all over the world, and we want to do everything we can to get the word out to our veterans about this great program,” Lester said. “All of these men and women are heroes to me, and it’s an honor to help inform them about Toyota and Lexus job opportunities when they decide to return to civilian life.”
Among the positions listed for the Toyota and Lexus dealership include sales consultants, service technicians and front-office support staff. With the auto industry currently facing a shortage of highly skilled automotive technicians – as many as 60,000 by some estimates – military veterans often have technical experience and training that can translate into the civilian workplace.
“Our dealers have found that the men and women of the U.S. military make up one of the best talent pools in America,” said Don Esmond, senior vice president of Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc., who was a Marine Corps helicopter pilot in Vietnam. “Toyota and Lexus dealerships employ more than 100,000 people across the nation, and at any one time there are more than 1,000 job openings. It can be difficult transitioning back into the civilian workplace, and we want to make sure veterans are aware of what’s available at Toyota and Lexus.”
Lester’s No. 22 Toyota Tundra race truck also will carry the Hire*A*Hero logo at the Las Vegas 350 NCTS race on Sept. 25. Both races are near large military bases. Lester led 19 laps earlier season at the Charlotte race.
“It would be great to put the Hire*A*Hero Tundra out front in those events and help reach as many in the men and women of the armed forces as possible,” Lester said.
Toyota also recently announced the introduction of a five-year, $1.25-million endowment to the Marine Scholarship Foundation. The scholarships are earmarked for the children of current and former Marines, with special attention to children whose parents were killed or wounded in action.
Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc. (TMS) is the sales, marketing distribution and customer service arm of Toyota, Lexus and Scion in the United States, marketing products and services through a network of 1,417 Toyota and Lexus dealers in 49 states. Established October 31, 1957, TMS and its subsidiaries are also involved in logistics, motorsports, R&D and general aviation.
September 06, 2004
FAST FACTS - DELPHI INDY 300
Sept. 12, 1:30 p.m. EDT, ABC
Chicagoland Speedway
200 Laps on the 1.5-mile oval for 300 miles
HORNISH LOOKS FOR THREE-PEAT – 2003 CHICAGO REVISITED - Sam Hornish Jr. (Marlboro Toyota) returns to the Chicagoland Speedway looking for his third consecutive Delphi Indy 300 victory. Regardless of the finish this Sunday, it will be extremely difficult to top last year’s spectacular conclusion. In a three-way photo finish, Hornish Jr. took the lead on Lap 199 of 200 and then held off a fast-closing Scott Dixon (Target Toyota) by just .0099 seconds.
SWEET HOME CHICAGO – The greater Chicago area has been kind to Toyota and a number of its current teams and drivers over the years. Target Chip Ganassi Racing was victorious with Juan Montoya in the now-defunct Chicago Motor Speedway (CMS) in that facility’s first race in 1999. A year later, the team established the track qualifying record as Montoya set a new standard in his Target Toyota. Yet, another Toyota-powered driver won the 2000 race with Cristiano da Matta earning his first Champ Car victory.
Although it was a different facility last year, the Ganassi team was still in high gear as eventual series champion Scott Dixon fell just short on his way to a second-place finish. While the Kiwi missed out on the top rung of the victory podium, he did earn a pair of Indy Lights victory at CMS in 1999 (his first Indy Lights win) and 2000 on the way to the series title. In total, Dixon has two victories and a second in three trips to greater Chicago.
Yet, nobody has had more Chicago success than Sam Hornish Jr. The two-time IndyCar Series champion not only won each of the last two IRL races at Chicagoland, but also placed second in the series first trip to the facility in 2001. In addition, he earned his first Toyota Atlantic Championship victory at CMS in 1999 giving him three wins and a second in four trips to Chicago.
RUNNING UP FRONT – Sam Hornish Jr. has led substantial portions of each of the last two races. The Penske Racing driver led 67 circuits at Pikes Peak and 44 more at Nazareth for a total of 111 in the past two events. Unfortunately, an on-track incident at Pikes Peak and another in the pits at Nazareth kept him out of the winner’s circle. In addition to Hornish’s exploits, teammate Helio Castroneves also led 100 laps at Nazareth giving the team 211 laps led out of the 450 run in the past two contests.
THREE TOYOTAS IN TOP-10 IN POINTS RACE – Heading into Chicago, three Toyota-powered drivers continue to rank in the top 10 in points. Helio Castroneves (Marlboro Toyota) remains in fourth-place, while his Marlboro Team Penske teammate Sam Hornish Jr. is currently in sixth. Darren Manning (Target Toyota) moved up to ninth with a fifth at Nazareth.
LEXUS GRAND-AM CARS TAKE LEAD INTO HOMESTEAD – Lexus takes a slim two-point lead in the Grand-American Daytona Prototype Manufacturer’s standings into this weekend’s Rolex Series event at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Lexus-powered prototypes have won four of the last five events with the CompUSA Ganassi Racing duo of Scott Pruett and Max Papis holding a 19-point advantage in the driver’s standings with four races remaining.
FOGARTY, DALZIEL TO DECIDE TOYOTA ATLANTIC TITLE – After one of the closest battles in series history, the Toyota Atlantic Championship will crown either Jon Fogarty or Ryan Dalziel as the 2004 champion this weekend at Laguna Seca. Heading into the most recent race at Montreal, Fogarty held a one-point lead, which he gave up after Dalziel’s provisional pole run in the first qualifying session. Fogarty then regained the point by taking the top spot in the final qualifying session (with Dalziel second) and went on to lead his closest competitor to the checkered flag to take a five-point lead into this weekend’s series finale. Both drivers still hold their destiny in their own hands with 22 points available.
Toyota IndyCar Series Driver Line-Up and Position Entering Chicago
Car # Driver Car Season Points Standing
#3 Helio Castroneves Marlboro Toyota (Dallara) 4th
#6 Sam Hornish Jr. Marlboro Toyota (Dallara) 6th (Won Homestead)
#10 Darren Manning Target Toyota (Panoz/G-Force) 9th
#1 Scott Dixon Target Toyota (Panoz/G-Force) 11th
#8 Scott Sharp Delphi Toyota (Dallara) 14th
#12 Tora Takagi Pioneer Toyota (Dallara) 15th
#14 A.J. Foyt IV Conseco Toyota (Dallara) 18th
“Quotes”
Jim Aust, Toyota vice president of motorsports: “We haven’t enjoyed a great deal of success on the mile and a half ovals this year, but it appears we made some progress at Kentucky where Sam (Hornish Jr.) was running in the top three before getting caught in the pits when a caution came out. Anyone who has seen a race at Chicago knows that it’s likely to come down to the last turn and that’s what we’re expecting this weekend. Last year, we were edged at the finish. Hopefully this year, we’ll turn the tables.”