2011 IndyCar Rd.8--Iowa Corn Indy 250

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2011 IndyCar Rd.8--Iowa Corn Indy 250

Post by mlittle » Tue Jun 21, 2011 5:01 pm

After visiting the high-banks of Texas and the historic Milwaukee Mile, IndyCar Series teams now head to the .875-mile bullring-style oval that is Iowa Speedway for the Iowa Corn Indy 250 presented by Pioneer and the Iowa Corn Growers Association.



Weekend Schedule, Iowa Corn Indy 250
note.....all times US CDT, -1 hr US EDT/-5 hrs. GMT
--Practice Session 1: 12-1:15pm, 24 June 2011
--PEAK Pole Qualifying: 4:50pm, 24 June 2011
--Practice Session 2: 7:30-8:15pm, 24 June 2011
--Iowa Corn Indy 250, 8pm VERSUS

Past Winners
--Dario Franchitti(2): 2007, 2009
--Dan Wheldon(1): 2008
--Tony Kanaan(1): 2010
Last edited by mlittle on Tue Jun 28, 2011 2:46 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Post by mlittle » Tue Jun 21, 2011 5:04 pm

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TrackMap, Iowa Speedway

Track Length....
Turn 1 thru Turn 2 - 1,338 ft
Backstretch - 869 ft
Turn 3 thru Turn 4 - 1,338 ft
Frontstretch - 1,075 ft

Banking.....
12-14 degrees thru turns
10 degrees thru front stretch
4 degrees thru backstretch
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Post by mlittle » Sat Jun 25, 2011 2:54 pm

Iowa Corn Indy 250 Entry List
Oriol Servia, #2 Telemundo-NHR
Helio Castroneves, #3 Guidepoint Systems
(R)J.R. Hildebrand, #4 National Guard
Takuma Sato, #5 Lotus-KV Racing
Ryan Briscoe, #6 PPG Automotive
Danica Patrick, #7 GoDaddy.com
Scott Dixon, #9 Target
Dario Franchitti, #10 Suave
Will Power, #12 Verizon Wireless
Vitor Meira, #14 ABC Supply Co.
(R)James Jakes, #18 Acorn Stairlifts
Alex Lloyd, #19 Boy Scouts of America
Justin Wilson, #22 Dad's Root Beer-DRR
(R)Ana Beatriz, #24 Ipringa-DRR
Marco Andretti, #26 Venom Energy
Mike Conway, #27 Window World
Ryan Hunter-Reay, #28 DHL-SunDrop
(R)Sebastien Saavedra, #34 Conquest Racing
Graham Rahal, #38 Service Central
E.J. Viso, #59 PDVSA-KV Racing
Ed Carpenter, #67 Dollar General
Alex Tagliani, #77 Bowers & Wilkins
Tony Kanaan, #82 GEICO-KV Racing
(R)Charlie Kimball, #83 Novolog-Levemir FlexPen
(R)James Hinchcliffe, #06 Sprotts-NHR
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Post by mlittle » Sat Jun 25, 2011 3:01 pm

Iowa Practice Session #1 Top-5
1st} Dario Franchitti, Target/Ganassi Racing.............17.417sec/181.403mph
2nd} Takuma Sato, KV Racing Tech.,.......................17.778sec/181.030mph
3rd} Scott Dixon, Target/Ganassi Racing..................17.793sec/180.876mph
4th} Danica Patrick, Andretti Autosport.....................17.818sec/180.624mph
5th} Marco Andretti, Andretti Autosport....................17.827sec/180.531mph

Iowa Practice Session #2 Top-5
1st} Ed Carpenter, Sarah Fisher Racing....................17.993sec/178.886mph
2nd} Danica Patrick, Andretti Autosport....................17.994sec/178.857mph
3rd} Takuma Sato, KV Racing Tech.,........................18.003sec/178.795mph
4th} Tony Kanaan, KV Racing Tech.,.........................18.017sec/178.631mph
5th} Dario Franchitti, Target/Ganassi Racing..............18.027sec/178.525mph
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De Silvestro Out For Iowa

Post by mlittle » Sat Jun 25, 2011 3:03 pm

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A concussion suffered this past weekend at Milwaukee has put the Swiss Miss on the shelf for Iowa this weekend........

---After displaying concussion-like symptoms after her qualifying crash at Milwaukee, the IZOD IndyCar Series has not cleared Simona De Silvestro to drive this weekend.

Earlier in the week, SPEED.com Marshall Pruett reported De Silvestro's HVM Racing team ordered the young Swiss driver to take two to three days of rest to recover from the after effects of the two rearward impacts she suffered at The Milwaukee Mile. De Silvestro addressed some aspects of the crash in her SPEED.com column on Tuesday.

While De Silvestro was not diagnosed with a concussion at the time of her crash, symptoms began to manifest the following day, including her admission that she did not recall the accident. According to a statement released by the IZOD IndyCar Series, De Silvestro's conditions worsened after her initial exam at Milwaukee on Saturday.

"Upon evaluation Sunday morning at Milwaukee, Simona had no physical signs of a concussion after the neurological exam and didn't report any post-concussion symptoms to the INDYCAR medical team so she was cleared to drive. After taking 11 laps in the car, Simona returned to the care center reporting post-concussion symptoms. Physical and emotional stress can bring out post-concussion symptoms."

With IndyCar's medical ruling coming so close to the start of practice, the team reported it will not look for a replacement driver to pilot the No. 78 Nuclear Clean Air Energy car at Iowa, and plans to return with De Silvestro for the next round in Toronto.
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Shock Pole For Sato At Iowa.......

Post by mlittle » Sat Jun 25, 2011 3:06 pm

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----Qualifying for the Iowa Corn Indy 250 was filled with big surprises as Takuma Sato scored his first pole, the first IZOD IndyCar Series pole for KV Racing-Lotus and the first pole for a Japanese driver in IndyCar Series competition. After running the second-fastest lap in practice this morning, Sato's two-lap average of 180.375 mph was good enough for pole and left the ex-F1 driver on an emotional high after losing his father last week.

“I want to say a big thank you to the whole team, the fans, the sponsors and everyone who has supported me,” he said. “It is a fantastic achievement. I knew we were going to be competitive because of last year and this morning I was truly comfortable in the car. I could feel where we needed to be with the setup for qualifying. Working so closely today with the three KVRT – Lotus drivers, working so closely with my engineers, we had a great answer. The mechanics also did a great job preparing the car. I am very pleased with today’s result.”

Danica Patrick once again led her four-car Andretti Autosport team, qualifying second for Saturday's race. Patrick's average speed of 180.210 earned the Go Daddy driver her first front row starting position since the Nashville oval in 2008, but she wasn't happy to miss out on the top spot by such a small margin. "I'm trying to think what I could have done to be on pole, to be honest," she said.

Sato's KV Racing-Lotus teammate Tony Kanaan qualified third in his GEICO-sponsored machine, continuing the form that nearly earned him the win last weekend in Milwaukee. Another surprise came in fourth position as rookie JR Hildebrand earned his best starting spot to date, posting an average speed of 179.569 in the National Guard-sponsored car.

“We got the ole girl a little loose there in practice, so we made a bunch of changes during the break and obviously rolled out there in qualifying and felt pretty good," said the Indy 500 runner-up. "We’re excited about what we had in qualifying there and even more excited about what we can have in the race."

A small sense of normalcy was maintained when Will Power placed his Verizon Wireless Team Penske car fifth on the grid, the best of the five combined cars from the dominant Penske and Ganassi teams. Like Patrick, Power wanted more from Friday's qualifying session at Iowa. "We have to have [a better day tomorrow]," he said emphatically. "We have to find a few things. We'll see what we can do tonight."

Penske's Ryan Briscoe qualified in 10th and Helio Castroneves, who also struggled in qualifying last weekend, was the slowest of the three teammates in 13th. "We just pushed as much as we could," he said with a touch of frustration. "We hope it’s better for the race."

Dario Franchitti qualified sixth, his worst oval starting spot since Kentucky last year. "I wasn't happy with the run," said the defending series champion. "The balance wasn't good and we struggled with both ends of the Suave car. I don't think it was as bad as Scott [Dixon's car] but I think both our cars just missed it today in qualifying. We'll be better."

If Franchitti was disappointed in sixth, his teammate had a particularly miserable qualifying run, ending up 23rd while reaching back a decade to match his worst starting position. "The Target car was just really loose and it was a pretty bad attempt," said Dixon. "I almost spun on the out lap and the first timed lap. We are just way too loose and it was not what we're looking for."

Starting P23 ties the Kiwi's worst starting spot on an oval, but as his Ganassi team noted, the last time Dixon started 23rd--10 years ago at Nazareth--he went on to win his first Indy car race.

Toronto's James Hinchcliffe secured his best starting position of the season--which was the theme for the day for many drivers--and was surprised to qualify seventh after encountering mechanical problems in practice that limited his running to just 20 laps before qualifying. "To go straight into qualifying without having done a flat out lap yet in practice was a little challenging but Newman/Haas gave me a great car," said the rookie driver who finished sixth at Milwaukee. "I was surprised by our performance to be honest; it was pretty much on edge but we put up a decent time."

Ryan Hunter-Reay and Mike Conway will start eighth and ninth for Andretti Autosport, placing three cars in the top 9. "Last year, we qualified 12th and we were up to the top five within the first 10 or 15 laps, so hopefully we're headed in that direction again," said Hunter-Reay. "The guys did a great job preparing the car and we're looking forward to getting things going tomorrow night."

Conway, who has struggled mightily on ovals so far this year, was slightly pleased to be toward the front of the field. "The car felt OK," he said. "It felt pretty 'stuck.' It felt similar to this morning. I thought there would be a little more speed there, but it was OK. Hopefully, we'll be able to race well from there tomorrow night."

The final member of the Andretti team, Marco Andretti, was somewhat indifferent with his qualifying run to 17th. "After running well with the Venom car in the morning warm-up, I was a bit disappointed with the qualifying results. I think there's a bit less grip on the track than last year and some of that could be in the tires. We're sliding more this year for sure and just weren't able to get the speed we needed in qualifying."

Oriol Servia, coming off a podium performance at Milwaukee, was expecting more from his car at Iowa. “I’m a little disappointed in the run. We were flat, easy flat actually so we expected to be a little faster. The Telemundo car honestly felt great in traffic in practice today and that’s what matters here. We just wanted a little more speed but will have to wait until tomorrow.”

Dreyer & Reinbold's Justin Wilson did well to qualify 12th, while Ed Carpenter, after fighting an ill-handling car all weekend at Milwaukee, made a strong run to start 14th. Alex Tagliani, paired with his third engineer in four races, will start 15th for Sam Schmidt Motorsports.

A number of drivers were disappointed to run slowly in qualifying, including E.J. Viso, whose teammates will start first and third. The PDVSA-sponsored driver will start 19th, one spot ahead of Graham Rahal. After starting 12th and finishing second a week ago, Rahal will have a lot of work to do to match that performance in Iowa. Charlie Kimball, his teammate at the Ganassi 'G2' operation, will start 21st. Of the four combined Ganassi entries, three are starting 20th or worse.

Only 24 cars participated in time trials after the 26-car entry list was reduced by one when HVM pulled Simona De Silvestro's entry after IndyCar's medical staff did not give her clearance to drive, and Conquest Racing's Sebastian Saavedra did not make a qualifying attempt.
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Post by mlittle » Sat Jun 25, 2011 3:08 pm

Iowa Corn Indy 250 Starting Grid


1. (5) Takuma Sato, Dallara-Honda, 180.375
2. (7) Danica Patrick, Dallara-Honda, 180.210

3. [82] Tony Kanaan, Dallara-Honda, 179.833
4. (4) JR Hildebrand, Dallara-Honda, 179.569

5. (12) Will Power, Dallara-Honda, 179.474
6. (10) Dario Franchitti, Dallara-Honda, 179.474

7. (06) James Hinchcliffe, Dallara-Honda, 179.385
8. [28] Ryan Hunter-Reay, Dallara-Honda, 179.305

9. (27) Mike Conway, Dallara-Honda, 179.185
10. (6) Ryan Briscoe, Dallara-Honda, 178.771

11. (2) Oriol Servia, Dallara-Honda, 178.742
12. (22) Justin Wilson, Dallara-Honda, 178.631

13. (3) Helio Castroneves, Dallara-Honda, 178.570
14. (67) Ed Carpenter, Dallara-Honda, 178.510

15. (77) Alex Tagliani, Dallara-Honda, 178.426
16. (14) Vitor Meira, Dallara-Honda, 178.365

17. (26) Marco Andretti, Dallara-Honda, 178.165
18. (24) Ana Beatriz, Dallara-Honda, 177.821

19. (59) EJ Viso, Dallara-Honda, 177.680
20. [38] Graham Rahal, Dallara-Honda, 177.509

21. [83] Charlie Kimball, Dallara-Honda, 177.280
22. (19) Alex Lloyd, Dallara-Honda, 177.257

23. (9) Scott Dixon, Dallara-Honda, 175.784
24. [18] James Jakes, Dallara-Honda, 173.365

25. (34) Sebastian Saavedra, Dallara-Honda, no speed
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Andretti Wins In Iowa....

Post by mlittle » Tue Jun 28, 2011 2:45 pm

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----Andretti Autosport entered the 2011 IZOD IndyCar Series season with three entrant championships, two Indianapolis 500 victories and 36 wins since 2003. The knock, however, has been what had the four-car team led by Michael Andretti done lately.

Earning the series championship and winning the Indy 500 in ’07 with Dario Franchitti, the team collected four victories and 57 top-five finishes (of 58 collective races among seven drivers) the succeeding three seasons. In the first half of this season, Andretti Autosport already has equaled its Victory Circle appearances of 2010 and ’08.

Marco Andretti’s exciting duel with former teammate Tony Kanaan to the checkered flag in the Iowa Corn Indy 250 presented by Pioneer under the lights June 25 at Iowa Speedway, in which he prevailed by 0.7932 of a second, followed up Mike Conway’s win in mid-April on the streets of Long Beach.

“It was a big win for us for sure,” said team owner Michael Andretti, who has 42 Indy car victories on his ledger. “I think a lot of people were really pounding on us and thought we were down and out, but I can tell you this team has got tons of fight in it and we are never out.”

On the .875-mile Iowa Speedway oval, Andretti started 17th and weaved through traffic to move into second behind Franchitti with a Lap 152 pass of Takuma Sato. He overtook Franchitti two laps later. A determining factor to remaining up front, and setting up the race to the finish with Kanaan, was a Lap 184 pit stop when Andretti’s No. 26 Team Venom Energy car charged out ahead of Franchitti’s car. Andertti and Kanaan exchange the lead in the final 47 laps, with Andretti grabbing the point for good on Lap 232.

“I’m happy for all the Venom guys; they did a great job,” Michael Andretti said. “The last pit stop they brought him out P1. They did it when we needed it. It was just really truly a team effort, and Marco drove a hell of a race there in the end. He was beating the best. He had Tony out there, he had Dario, (Scott) Dixon and he drove very well there in the end. I’m just so happy and relieved for (Marco). There’s been a huge monkey on his back, and it was on mine, as well. There was just a lot of pressure on us, him as a driver, me as an owner, because of some of the past things that happened at Indy and stuff. So to come back and win like this, it was just a great, great day.”

In the nine races, its lineup of Danica Patrick, Ryan Hunter-Reay, Conway and Andretti have amassed four top-five and 12 top-10 finishes. Patrick posted her third consecutive top 10 in the No. 7 Team GoDaddy car after starting on the front row, and Hunter-Reay started and finished eighth in the No. 28 Team DHL/Circle K/Sun Drop Citrus Soda entry.

Andretti gained four positions in the standings to eighth with the win.
For the third-generation Indy car driver, the 78-race gap between victories (Aug. 27, 2006 at Infineon Raceway as a 19-year-old rookie) was a rocky road of racing experiences and maturation.

“We’ve been in a position to win a lot of races and we’ve come up short,” said Andretti, who had three runner-up finishes between wins. “I never doubted the team, never doubted myself. I always said as soon as the stars were aligned and a little bit of luck goes my way that we'd be sitting here. I think it's just the drought, so to speak, just made me appreciate what we have here in IndyCar racing. From the drivers to the teams, it just makes us appreciate being here that much more because we know we beat those guys. The competition is unbelievable.”


Top-10 from the heartland..........
1} #26 Marco Andretti, 250 laps
2} #82 Tony Kanaan, -0.793 sec
3} #9 Scott Dixon, -1.107 sec
4}(R)#4 J.R. Hildebrand, -1.486 sec
5} #10 Dario Franchitti, -1.893 sec
6} #6 Ryan Briscoe, -2.362 sec
7} #3 Helio Castroneves, -2.673 sec
8} #28 Ryan Hunter-Reay, -4.163 sec
9}(R)#06 James Hinchcliffe, -5.627 sec
10} #7 Danica Patrick, -6.033 sec
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