The 2007 Indy 500 and IndyCar Series champion is back where he belongs. After his one year hiatus to the world of slow cars and four fenders, or as it also known NASCAR, Dario Franchitti made his presence felt. Dario took the #10 Target Chip Ganassi entry to the front for his first win under the TCG banner. Dario ran a great race and used some solid pit strategy to work his way to the front, and held on for a relatively easy win Sunday. Using an off-sequence pit stop, and saving fuel all along the way, he was able to be where he needed to be in the final laps. When he was given the green light to run full rich he pulled out nearly a 4 second lead over Will Power and the rest of the IndyCar field.

After Dario and Will; Tony Kanaan, Danica Patrick, Dan Wheldon, Marco Andretti, Helio Castroneves, Raphael Matos, Robert Doornbos and Alex Tagliani rounded out the top ten.

The IndyCar Series has now completed two races for the 2009 season and as of right now here is your top five in points:

Dario Franchitti – 84

Will Power – 69

Ryan Briscoe – 67

Tony Kanaan – 65

Ryan Hunter-Reay – 59

Helio Back in the Saddle:

Helio Castroneves, fresh out of his acquittal on 6 counts of tax evasion, was in the racecar this weekend in the #3 Team Penske machine. He finished 7th in Long Beach and looked very happy to be back on the track. Given the stressful situations he has faced the past 6 weeks or so, I would look for him to look like the Helio of old this weekend. I will not be surprised with a top three finish as the IndyCar series heads for Kansas this coming weekend. The Kansas race will be the first oval of the 2009 season, and the last race before the month long pause that is the Indianapolis 500 during the month of May.

Out of Power:

Will Power, who was a formidable fill-in for Helio while he was out facing his legal issues, will get an undeserved rest this week. Will Power currently sits 2nd in the championship, but his position is likely to slip this weekend. The #12 machine is being parked until Indy. Verizon, who sponsored the #12 at Long Beach, will be back with Team Penske and supporting Will Power during the “Greatest Spectacle in Racing” at the Brickyard come May. The reason for Power being parked is strictly financial. Will has proven his weight so far this year and I expect him to be a player at Indianapolis. He will be driving for sponsorship for the rest of the season.

The Indy 500 Entry List released:

40 entries of drivers and machines have been released for the Indianapolis 500 to be ran on May 24th, 2009. As of this post, there are 28 drivers named and many more to be named in the coming weeks as teams try to gain enough sponsorship to fill the field. Some notable entries this year are the return of Davey Hamilton, John Andretti, Sarah Fisher and Paul Tracy.

Paul Tracy hasn’t raced in the Indianapolis 500 since 2002 when he lost a controversial call regarding the timing of a yellow flag and rode behind Helio Castroneves to finish 2nd. Paul Tracy ran a one off race last year for Vision Racing and finished 4th at Edmonton. Look for Paul Tracy to make waves all month long. There is no doubt he wants to be back in a racecar, and for much longer than just the month of May.

There are 4 previous winners as well as 4 rookies on the books so far. We’ll keep an eye on those numbers as the TBA on the entry list turn into actual drivers. The car count looks great and there should be no rumors about the Indy 500 NOT having it’s traditional 33 cars. Remember boys and girls, the Indianapolis 500 is still the worlds largest one day sporting event.

Keep an eye herefor continuing updates on IndyCar news, and look back here at Midwest Sports Fans for our Kansas preview later this week.