----The underdogs, the castaways and the forgotten had their day at Indianapolis on Saturday’s run for the pole.
Tagliani, bumped out of the 2009 Indy 500, Oriol Servia, who was unemployed last year, Dan Wheldon, who lost his job for 2011, Townsend Bell, who only races once a year and Buddy Rice, who has been out of IndyCar since 2009, made the Fast 9 session and proved that the dominant teams and drivers can indeed be beaten...at least in qualifying.
For Tagliani, who made the final run of the day, drove into the history books as the fastest qualifier for the 100th anniversary event for the Indy 500.
"We're playing in the big boys league," and we're trying to bring it," said an ecstatic Tagliani. "The next step is to try and win the race. "I'm probably going to be pinching myself until I go to bed. It's been an amazing team effort. We have a great group of people, and the additions with the other cars. I had good input from Townsend (Bell) and Dan (Wheldon) and it's been nice to work as a big group this week. I wanted this one so bad."
The French-Canadian open-wheel veteran had been fast all week, leading the time sheets on multiple occasions, and despite taking the best shots that Target Chip Ganassi Racing and Team Penske had to offer, the minnows at Sam Schmidt Motorsports shocked the establishment to place the Bowers & Wilkins-sponsored No. 77 Sam Schmidt Motorsports car on top of the leader board.
The 2011 Indy 500 also marks the 10th anniversary of SSM's first run at the Speedway and Tagliani's pole was the first for a Canadian driver at Indy.
“I’m really lost for words," said Schmidt. "It’s truly huge. Whether it’s the 100th anniversary or whether it’s the adversity that Alex has overcome. It’s just really large.”
Tagliani's laps of 227.733, 227.488, 227.430 and 227.238 were fast enough to demote Ganassi's Scott Dixon to second place. Tagliani's 227.472 average was just slightly faster than the 227.340 produced by Dixon, the 2008 Indy 500 winner.
"It was kind of a strange day," said Dixon. "Even to see Helio starting 16th is kind of mind-boggling. We missed a little bit. Dario obviously missed on fuel a little more than we did. He ran out going into Turn 1 and I ran out into Turn 4 and I think that cost me the pole. We lost nine-tenths of a mile-per-hour on that last lap. To come so close and to not get it was quite frustrating. Mistakes happen. That takes nothing away from Tagliani and what he’s achieved, though."
Third place went to Oriol Servia who sat on pole until Dixon, then Tagliani moved him to the outside of the front row. The Telemundo-sponsored Newman/Haas Racing pilot recorded an average speed of 227.168 during his impressive run.
"Six months ago, a month ago...Monday I would not have predicted we would have made the front row," said Servia. "I figured if we were really luck we would make the top 9. That was our goal. They gave me a great car and we got all out of the car that we could. To have the three Penske cars behind in qualifying it just feels amazing and is such an achievement for the team."
Townsend Bell continued his string of top-caliber runs at Indy to qualify fourth in the second SSM car. Bell drove the No. 99 Herbalife car to an average of 226.887.
"This is my favorite racetrack and the best racetrack in the world, and I just love coming here," said Bell. "It's really just become like a pilgrimage ever year for me to come here from California. It's great to be a part of it. I really want to win this thing, and this is the best car I've had so far. When I start doing stuff in the cockpit on the first lap, you never know how it's going to affect the other side of the track, so I had to make sure I could put a whole lap together in all four corners before I got more aggressive in (laps) three and four. Once we settled down, the time started to pick up. It's a really nice race car and full credit to Tagliani and his engineering staff that really led the program through last year until now. It's just a joy to drive the car."
Will Power--the only Penske driver to make the Fast 9--did his best to hide his disappointment of qualifying fifth after starting in the middle of the front row in 2010.
"Our car was solid all day," he said. "And I was pretty trimmed out so I don’t know what else I could have done. As a team we didn’t do that well, so we’re a bit surprised. There’s not much else to say."
Dan Wheldon made the day for Bryan Herta Autosport as he qualified sixth in his William Rast-sponsored car. The 2005 Indy 500 winner benefited from the technical alliance between BHA and the pole-sitting SSM team, giving the three-car collective an amazing 1-4-6 in qualifying.
"I would have liked to have gone a little bit quicker and pushed Tag (Alex Tagliani) a little bit more," said Wheldon. "It was a lot more gusty than what it has been, and there was a difference in the wind direction. That means you have to be more on top of the controls in the car, and I think I handled that reasonably well. I made a little bit of a mistake on the exit of Turn 4 on the final lap when I just let the wind get underneath the car. To be honest, the speed is a testimony to this team. It's not me; the guys have done a fantastic job. I know what I want from the race car, and we're making it work. Being in a race car is what I love to do. My time off made me realize how much I love motor racing. I'm having a blast. We will be a force to be reckoned with."
Buddy Rice put his un-sponsored Panther Racing entry seventh on the grid for the Indy 500, reminding everyone just how skilled the 2004 race winner happens to be.
"When we unloaded we had such a good car I knew the speed was there," said Rice. "Both Panther cars were fast all week. We just missed it a little bit with the gear[ing] and the weather."
Ed Carpenter kept Sarah Fisher Racing's dream month going by qualifying eighth. the fearless oval specialist set a staggering warmup lap, but struggled for grip throughout the rest of his four-lap run.
"It was a great day for the entire Dollar General/Sarah Fisher Racing organization," said Carpenter. "We missed on the balance a little bit when we went back out for the Fast Nine, but we're still very happy. We're not here to win the shoot out; we're here to win the race. We'll get back on track tomorrow and continue to work on getting the Dollar General machine set up for the race."
Dario Franchitti won't forget May 21st, 2011 anytime soon after his Target-sponsored car ran out of fuel on his fourth and final qualifying lap.
"We were pretty close on setup with the Target car, but not good enough for the pole today," said Franchitti. "We were definitely good enough for third place. We obviously ran out of fuel at the end of the third lap and that was it. It’s disappointing for us, but I'm happy for Sam Schmidt, Allen McDonald, Alex Tagliani and their whole team."
Behind the Fast 9--and including those who did or didn't make the Fast 9--things were positively strange on Saturday.
• Helio Castroneves, fastest of all on Friday, has the worst Indy 500 qualifying performance of his career and will start 16th.
• Only two of the three Team Penske entries made the top 24, while only two of Ganassi's four cars made the field on Saturday.
• Oriol Servia, unemployed for all of 2010, storms back to make the Fast 9 and qualifies second after never starting better than 25th in his two previous Indy 500s.
• Only one of the five Andretti Autosport entries (John Andretti, 17th) made the top 24, while all four cars from the KV Racing-Lotus/SH Racing stable made it in on Pole Day.
• Both Rahal Letterman Lanigan entries made the top 24 with Bertrand Baguette (14th) and rookie Jay Howard (21st).
• Simona De Silvestro, just 48 hours after suffering serious burns to her hands, makes three qualifying attempts to bump her way in to take the final spot in the top 24.
After spending most of the week down slightly on the speed charts, Sato rocketed to a four-lap average of 225.736 to earn the 10th starting spot.
“It’s a great feeling for me to be standing here today already qualified,” said the Japanese ex-F1 driver. “Last year, we had a moment on qualifying day. This is a terrific day for us. I appreciated the effort the team as given. They have done a terrific job. We are working very closely with the other KV teams. We debriefed last night past 9 p.m. to get ready for today. (My teammate) Tony Kanaan helped a lot. He has tons of ideas. We have all been really good in sharing."
Sato’s teammates occupied the sixth and eighth rows, with E.J. Viso qualifying 18th, Tomas Scheckter in 22nd and Tony Kanaan in 23rd.
“Those were some comfortable laps,” said Viso. “We had a pretty stable car. I feel like we can trim the car a little bit more and find some more speed. The track was pretty good. It was still low temperatures. It was not too abrasive for the tires. There was wind in the back straight, so we needed to be playing with the tools in the car – the front bar, the rear bar, etc. We believe we achieved what we expected. It’s been a great atmosphere with this team. Now we have shared information, and hopefully we can go as fast as we can. It’s such a long race, starting position is not that important, especially in 500 miles.”
Scheckter praised his crew after his solid run for the KV-led SH Racing outfit.
“These guys have been working flat-out,” said the South African. “I've got to thank the REDLINE Xtreme guys for working hard. We've been struggling this month. I mean, that's what Indy's about sometimes. We're going to keep working hard. We feel good because we didn't think we had that in the car. That's the best we've run, so that's an improvement. I thought today was almost not even near getting in; of having a shot. So to put four laps together quicker than what we've done before, I've got to be pleased with that.”
Kanaan, after enduring a brutal Month of May in 2010, was happy to be in the field with his new team but wasn't feeling as safe as he wanted..
"It was not what I wanted, but it was what I was expecting,” said Kanaan. “I'm glad that we got the car in today but tomorrow is another day and we need to see what's going to happen to the field when the bumping begins."
A.J. Foyt's Brazilian pairing of Vitor Meira and Bruno Junqueira represented the team well, with Meira placing his ABC Supply car 11th with a 225.590 average, while 'Junky' secured 19th with a run to 224.691.
“The car was trouble-free," said Meira. "It felt really good. I wasn’t scratching my head. A.J. Foyt Racing did a very good job, pre-month of May, to prepare the car and do all our planning. So when we get here, we’re trouble-free, just like we are now, so we can work on the small details. It comes from working methodically and not drafting on a day that was great. We knew what we had, and everything worked out real fine. The team works methodically to make sure every piece of the car is right, and that’s what they have done so far. We’re not a first-row car; we’re good where we’re at.”
“I am very happy to be able to qualify today and to qualify 19th," said Junqueira. "It was better than expected, and I think the ABC Supply/AJ Foyt team did a very, very good job turning this car around and improving so much. We gained so much speed, we are much closer to Vitor, the car had a great balance in qualifying. We were really trimmed, low downforce, and I was flat all the way around. I enjoyed it so much.”
JR Hildebrand was the fastest rookie in the field on Saturday, posting a 225.579 average to place the National Guard car 12th.
"I think we have a little more speed in the car," he said "The Panther guys have done a great job in preparing this car. This car has been awesome every time we’ve hit the track, and that has really built up my confidence. I’m new to this qualifying gig. I’ve been to Pole Day the last four years as a spectator, and it’s pretty neat to be a part of the big show.”
Hildebrand was shadowed in qualifying by his fellow rookie, James Hinchcliffe. The Newman/Haas driver made a run to 13th with a four-lap average of 225.572, but felt his Sprott-sponsored car.
“I’m fairly comfortable with it," said the young Canadian. "I think the conditions today were pretty tough, and we were a little slower than we expected to run. Given how windy it was, we’re pretty pleased. Everybody is struggling a little bit with the wind. The cars get pretty dicey in the first turn, which is already the most difficult corner. But I feel pretty good. The team did a super job getting everything prepared, and I feel really comfortable in the car. We just need to make sure we make it through 200 laps now that we’ve gone through the first four. Right before I went out, my chief mechanic looked at me and said, ‘No matter what happens, you’re about to try and qualify for the Indy 500.’ That sort of brought it all home. It’s true. No matter what happens, I’m going to go out there and put my right foot down and have a good time. I really enjoyed it.”
Rahal Lanigan Letterman Racing's Bertrand Baguette improved 10 spots from his 2010 qualifying performance to secure 14th for his team with a 225.285. Jay Howard, who was bumped from the field in his first run at Indy last year, made significant gains overnight to qualify 21st in his Service Central-sponsored car.
“We are in the race and that’s the most important part of the day for us,” said Baguette. “But I feel that we are all a little disappointed with the speed, since we were able to do so much in the last couple days with the car. We were targeting a berth in the Fast Nine, and will feel we had to car to get there, which is why we are a little disappointed. But at the end of the day, we are in the race, in a good spot, and are ready to go.’
Howard looked like all of the frustration he'd been carrying for the past 364 days had been released after making the field.
“I’m over the moon about how our day went and am very glad to be in the Indianapolis 500,” grinned Howard. “The run was interesting and I had to use my tools during my run to keep everything where we wanted it, but we were able to keep everything going and put up a good time. It’s great because now we can work on the race car tomorrow and hopefully not have to worry about any more qualifying setups.”
Davey Hamilton, who qualified Sam Schmidt's first entry into the Indy 500 in 2001, posted the 15th-fastest time of the day, running to an average speed of 225.250 for his Dreyer & Reinbold Racing team. The HP-sponsored driver was happy to run so strongly, especially after running faster laps earlier in the day.
"It was a great day, really," he said. "I came in to today thinking that if I'm in the top-16 that I was going to be happy and I'm 15th, so I can't complain. We were down on speed from where we thought we were going to be. Earlier this morning we ran a 225.7 mph, but I thought that I could back it up and maybe improve it, but when the wind came up it kept us in the low 25's. The HP car was great and I'm happy. The team did a good job and we are in the race. Now we have a lot of work to do on the race setups."
Defending pole sitter Helio Castroneves says Team Penske tried everything possible to get his Shell-sponsored car into the Fast 9.
"We went a little bit conservative this morning. We started pushing, and it wasn't quite the way we expected. So we decided to go back like yesterday when we were very solid; great. But all of the sudden, we were just 225.2. The gear wasn't pulling the speed we wanted. So it's a big question mark. You know, it is what it is. It's one of those things. We took a chance to be a little bit more conservative, and it didn't pay off. But, hey, it's not always that we get it right. All the guys out there have done a phenomenal job. It's just so interesting how one small change we did turned out to be kind of like a big change out there. But this is Indy, baby."
John Andretti, the lone Andretti Autosport representative to make the top 24, tried repeatedly to get into the field, and posted a stout 224.981 average to claim 17th.
"There's so much excitement when you're in the front, but there's even more pressure when you're not," said Andretti. "You've only got to go through it once to know you never want to go through it again. After our first couple of attempts, we made a few changes and the car just came to life. The weather helped us; the wind seemed to have died down a bit. The Window World car was quick-the guys on the team did a great job. I've been through this before, so I wasn't panicking but I was ready to be done. This race means a lot to me and my family. For me to be in this race on the 100th anniversary is special; it's nice to be able to do it one more time."
Justin Wilson was a surprise 11th in the 2010 Indy 500 time trials, but the ex-F1 driver had to settle for 20th in 2011.
"I think it has been a reasonable day for the Z-Line Designs team," said the Brit. "I was hoping to go a little bit faster, but I think that the day was pretty slow in the middle. The air was pretty dense and it slowed us down, so the car was really stuck even though we were really trimmed out. We are happy with that. We want to go quicker. I think we have it in us if we have to and we will see what happens tomorrow. We will take it one step at a time."
Pole Day was bookended by two amazing stories. If Tagliani's fairly tale run to pole wasn't good enough, Simona De Silvestro, driving a less-than-perfect backup car after her fiery crash on Thursday, refused to give up on Saturday. The Swiss driver, with burns and blisters on the back of her hands, was bumped from the top 24, failed to make it back into the top 24 on her next qualifying attempt, and finally mustered enough speed to post s 224.392 average to round out the first day of running.
The emotions were running high after De Silvestro got out of the car.
"My body's shaking," she said. "I was pretty nervous out there. We didn't do many laps. I really have to thank Nuclear Clean Air Energy for the support they've given me. The team, too, they worked really hard to get the car back together. A day ago, I wasn't sure if I wanted to get back in the car. I was really freaked out about it. But I think I made the right decision to get back in, and the doctors have taken really good care of me. After the crash, I was like, 'I don't need this. This is too crazy. It's way too dangerous.' You know, after a while you're back to being a race car driver and thinking, 'Nah, I can do this.' And you suck it up. This morning, I felt pretty good. Then I went to qualify and thought, 'Ah, I'm not too sure about that.' And especially when you're sitting and they're showing your crash on the screen. It's like, really? Thanks. But it's great, the crowd, too. They've really lifted me up yesterday and today. Because of them, I really want to do something well here. [My hands are] a little sore, because the skin is pretty tight. We haven't really worked on them yet. We'll see if they want to do that tonight or wait until tomorrow. But they've taken really good care of me. It just looks really gross right now."
Injuries aside, after rain, numerous upsets and some amazing tales that came out of Pole Day, it's hard to imagine how anyone--drivers trying to make the field, and the fans who follow them--could handle the same level of intensity on Bump Day.