2008 IRL Rd. 14--Meijer Indy 300

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August......a month that brings with it a lot of things: the dog days of summer when one can sit along the banks of any ole' river, drinking iced tea and watching the waters flow on their way, the beginnings of the late summer season and the impending arrival of autumn.....and the conclusion of the 2008 IndyCar Series season, which begins at the low-banked, 1.5-mile Kentucky Speedway. Set in the midst of bluegrass country, this track starts a four-race period which will, at its' conclusion, crown an IndyCar Series champion for 2008.

--Past Pole/Race Winners....................
2000: Scott Goodyear, Buddy Lazier
2001: Scott Sharp, Buddy Lazier
2002: Sarah Fisher, Felipe Giaffone
2003: Sam Hornish, Jr., Sam Hornish, Jr.
2004: Buddy Rice, Adrian Fernandez
2005: Danica Patrick, Scott Sharp
2006: Helio Castroneves, Sam Hornish, Jr.
2007: Tony Kanaan, Tony Kanaan
--Event Schedule......................
Practice Session #1, 11:15am-1pm, 8 August 2008
Practice Session #2, 2:45-4:45pm, 8 August 2008
PEAK Motor Oil Qualifying, 6:30pm, 8 August 2008
Meijer Indy 300, 6:30pm, 9 August 2008
--Broadcast Info
(domestic TV)ESPN2
(domestic radio)IMS Radio Network
(satellite radio)XM Satellite Radio Chs. 144-145
(webcast, a/v)www.indycar.com
(international simulcast)United States Armed Forces Network

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Meijer Indy 300 Entry List

A.J. Foyt, IV, #2 Vision Wellness
Helio Castroneves, #3 Team Penske
Vitor Meira, #4 National Guard/Delphi
Oriol Servia, #5 Plantronics/i-Rise
Ryan Briscoe, #6 Team Penske
Danica Patrick, #7 Motorola
(R)Will Power, #8 Aussie Vineyards
Scott Dixon, #9 Target
Dan Wheldon, #10 Target
Tony Kanaan, #11 Team 7-11
Darren Manning, #14 ABC Supply Co.
Buddy Rice, #15 RollCoater/Racing for Kids
Ryan Hunter-Reay, #17 Ethanol
Bruno Junquiera, #18 Z-Line Designs
(R)Mario Moraes, #19 Sonny's Real Pit BBQ
Ed Carpenter, #20 Menards/DirecTV
Milka Duno, #23 CITGO
Marty Roth, #25 Fountain Powerboats
Marco Andretti, #26 Meijer
(R)Hideki Mutoh, #27 Formula Dream
(R)Ernesto[E.J.] Viso, #33 PDVSA
(R)Jaime Camara, #34 Sangari
(R)Enrique Bernoldi, #36 Sangari
Sarah Fisher, #67 Dollar General
(R)Justin Wilson, #02 McDonald's
(R)Graham Rahal, #06 Hole in the Wall Camps

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~~Event: Meijer Indy 300, round 14 of 17 of the 2008 IRL IndyCar Series
~~When: 6:30pm, 9 August 2008
~~Where: Kentucky Speedway, Sparta, Ky.
~~Distance: 200 laps(300 miles/480 kms)
~~Television: ESPN2
~~Domestic AM Radio: IMS Radio Network
~~Satellite Radio: XM Satellite Radio, Channels 144-145


~~Firehawk Info.............
(1)each team will be supplied with 8 sets[32 tires] of Firestone Firehawk racing slicks
(2)tire stagger for Kentucky[the difference between the size of the right-side tires vs. the left-side tires*] is set at 0.45 inches
(3)the tire compound in use this weekend were previously used at Homestead, Kansas and Texas; the same compound will be used at Chicagoland
*--stagger refers to the larger size of the right-side tires, especially the right-rear, vs. the size of the left-side/rear tires; this allows racecars to turn better on oval tracks

Al Speyer, Executive Director, Bridgestone Motorsports:

After a welcome weekend off, it's time for the stretch run to the championship with four races in five weekends. We kick it off at Kentucky Speedway, another of the one-and-a-half mile ovals that promotes the intense, tire-to-tire racing that the IndyCar Series is known for. Firestone is bringing a tire to Kentucky that is expected to increase grip and ratchet up the excitement a notch or two. IndyCar Series teams and drivers have relied on Firestone to provide reliable, race-worthy tires since the (IndyCar Series') first event in 1996. We take great pride in that trust and take quite seriously the responsibility (that goes with it).

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Kentucky Practice Session #1 top-5...............
1} Scott Dixon, Target/Ganassi Racing, 24.198 sec/220.181 mph
2} Dan Wheldon, Target/Ganassi Racing, 24.289 sec/219.361 mph
3} Danica Patrick, Andretti-Green Racing, 24.342 sec/218.884 mph
4}(R)Hideki Mutoh, Andretti-Green Racing, 24.370 sec/218.631 mph
5} Ryan Briscoe, Team Penske, 24.375 sec/218.589 mph

Kentucky Practice Session #2 top-5................
1} Scott Dixon, Target/Ganassi Racing, 24.218 sec/220.004 mph
2} Vitor Meira, Panther Racing, 24.277 sec/219.469 mph
3} Marco Andretti, Andretti-Green Racing, 24.306 sec/219.203 mph
4}(R)Hideki Mutoh, Andretti-Green Racing, 24.309 sec/219.181 mph
5} Ryan Briscoe, Team Penske, 24.364 sec/218.685 mph

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Meijer Indy 300 Starting Lineup..................
note.....speeds listed are 4-lap averages


1} Scott Dixon, #9 Target, 218.986 mph
2} Vitor Meira, #4 National Guard/Delphi, 218.409 mph

3} Dan Wheldon, #10 Polaroid, 218.332 mph
4}(R)Hideki Mutoh, #27 Formula Dream, 217.696 mph

5} Ryan Briscoe, #6 Team Penske, 217.665 mph
6} Helio Castroneves, #3 Team Penske, 217.642 mph

7} Tony Kanaan, #11 Team 7-11, 217.604 mph
8} Ed Carpenter, #20 Menards/DirecTV, 217.469 mph

9} Marco Andretti, #26 Meijer, 217.604 mph
10} A.J. Foyt, IV, #2 Vision Wellness, 217.286 mph

11} Marty Roth, #25 Fountain Powerboats, 217.046 mph
12} Oriol Servia, #5 Plantronics/i-Rise, 217.015 mph

13}(R)Will Power, #8 Aussie Vineyards, 216.729 mph
14} Ryan Hunter-Reay, #17 Ethanol, 216.687 mph

15} Buddy Rice, #15 RollCoater/Racing for Kids, 216.609 mph
16} Sarah Fisher, #67 Dollar General, 216.557 mph

17} Darren Manning, #14 ABC Supply Co., 216.321 mph
18} Milka Duno, #23 CITGO, 215.694 mph

19}(R)Justin Wilson, #02 McDonald's, 215.459 mph
20}(R)Graham Rahal, #06 Hole in the Wall Camps, 215.263 mph

21}(R)E.J. Viso, #33 PDVSA, 215.065 mph
22}(R)Jaime Camara, #34 Sangari, 214.099 mph

23}(R)Mario Moraes, #19 Sonny's Real Pit BBQ, 213.749 mph
24}(R)Enrique Bernoldi, #36 Sangari, 213.511 mph

25} Danica Patrick, #7 Motorola, no posted time*
26} Bruno Junquiera, #18 Z-Line Designs, no posted time**
*--crashed during session #2 following a right-rear suspension failure; Patrick will run a backup #7 for the race
**--mechanical issues during today's practices prompted Dale Coyne Racing to pull Junquiera from qualifying

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Back in 2005, then-AGR driver Dan Wheldon set the record for wins by an IndyCar Series driver with 6 wins......flash forward to 2008; his Ganassi teammate, Scott Dixon, now owns part of the record with his 6th win of the 2008 season, all but clinching the series championship in the process....

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In the 2007 season finale at Chicagoland, TGR's Scott Dixon ran out of fuel exiting turn 4, handing the race win and the season championship to Dario Franchitti........fast forward to Kentucky, 2008: instead of being on the short end of the fuel situation, the Kiwi benefitted from rival Helio Castroneves running dry with the finish line in sight, capturing the win Saturday night and all but sewing up the 2008 IndyCar Series championship.

Top-10 from a dry Kentucky............
1st} #9 Scott Dixon, 200 laps
2nd} #3 Helio Castroneves, -0.553 sec
3rd} #26 Marco Andretti, -0.571 sec
4th} #4 Vitor Meira, -0.910 sec
5th} #10 Dan Wheldon, -2.147 sec
6th} #20 Ed Carpenter, -5.953 sec
7th} #6 Ryan Briscoe, -6.227 sec
8th} #11 Tony Kanaan, -7.093 sec
9th} #17 Ryan Hunter-Reay, -10.953 sec
10th} #15 Buddy Rice, -21.686 sec