(Vitor Meira is uninjured by a pit lane BBQ during the Indy 500 – photo from Gawker.com)

Dateline: Indianapolis Motor Speedway

By now, if you have interest in the Greatest Spectacle in Racing, you already know the highlights of the event. On the World’s biggest stage, Helio Castroneves becomes part of an elite group of race car drivers who can say they have won the Indy 500 three times. Only three men: Rick Mears, Al Unser and AJ Foyt have won it more with 4 victories.

It’s not much of a story that the fastest guy all month, the pole sitter, the pit stop champion, and a two time winner gets to drink the milk in victory lane. That’s the way it should go down, especially on one of the sports wealthiest teams in Team Penske. What makes this 500 one that will go down as a legendary race? The fact that just 7 weeks ago, Helio Castroneves was submersed into a Tax Evasion trial with the Internal Revenue Service, helps a bit. On the day those verdicts were read, if Helio would have been found guilty, he could very well have been in a Federal Prison on Memorial Day. Instead, he ran a brilliant race and stayed near the front all day. With about 50 laps to go, he made a pass for the lead and was off to the races. No one would be able to catch the fiery Brazilian, but it didn’t even matter that he won by nearly 2 seconds over Dan Wheldon, it was the victory itself that was so mesmerizing.

Also of note is that Danica Patrick, who finished third behind Wheldon, became the highest finishing female driver in Indianapolis 500 history. If she could have gotten around Wheldon, who knows what she would have had for Helio…but she didn’t and wound up in third. Major MSF props go to Danica and the Boost Mobile #7 of Andretti Green Racing. You guys were fun to watch all day long.

Alex Tagliani, who was inserted in the 33th position when he replaced Bruno Junquiera in the Conquest Racing car, finished 11th and walked away with Rookie of The Year honors. Way to go TAGS!

The race was slowed by over 60 laps of yellow flags from accidents and debris, but fortunately most of them were single car accidents. One of the not so lucky ones was Vitor Meira (pictured above). Vitor Meira and Rapha Matos tangled going into turn one and Meira took a hard impact into the SAFER barrier, sliding alongside the wall on two wheels. He stopped skidding in front of where we were seated in the entrance to turn two. Vitor is out for the year, he suffered a broken back which is not going to require surgery, but will have him in a back brace and therapy until the 2010 season. Matos escaped with little injuries. Tony Kanaan was involved in a very heave single car accident when something in the right rear of the car broke, throwing his 7/11 Andretti Green car into the retaining wall. He suffered a few broken ribs and some pretty rough bruising from the accident.

The weather, almost always a factor on race day, was perfect. Sun shined on turn two for the majority of the event and I have the sunburn to prove it. The forecast had called for as high as a 60% chance of rain throughout the day, yet in reality we didn’t get a drop of rain until Monday morning. This year’s weather is just another thing that made the race so special. When the forecasters, just the day before, are concerned about the race getting in…or being delayed because of weather, you can always feel a bit of apprehension in the crowd. From the moment we arrived in the “Coke Lot”, the weather would not be an issue…and was just perfect.

In the theater of drama, known commonly as the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, there are so many things I take away when we leave the famous intersection of 16th and Georgetown behind, and head for home on the north side of Indy. This year, I will remember sitting by my sister the most. Though she has been to the 500 before, we had not sat together until Sunday. I think, that’s the thing about Indy. It’s a race…it’s a party…and it’s a family. My family has three generations that have now been to that wonderful place during the month of May, and it really is a special place to us. As Taps began to play, just minutes before the command to start engines, I got teary eyed. I looked over at my sister, sitting to my right, and saw she too had teared up. We smiled, wiping our eyes dry, thinking quietly that I couldn’t believe we were crying because of a race…but I know it’s much more than that. In many ways, it’s who we are.

Here are the full results of the 93rd Running of the Indianapolis 500.

93rd Indianapolis 500 – Race Results
Rank	Car No.	Driver	Car Name	Laps/Retired	Grid	Laps Led	Points
1	3	Hélio Castroneves	Team Penske	200	1	66	51
2	4	Dan Wheldon	National Guard Panther Racing	200	18	0	40
3	7	Danica Patrick	Boost Mobile/Motorola (Andretti Green Racing)	200	10	0	35
4	8	Townsend Bell	Herbalife–KV Racing Technology	200	24	0	32
5	12	Will Power	Verizon Wireless (Team Penske)	200	9	0	30
6	9	Scott Dixon	Target Chip Ganassi Racing	200	5	73	30
7	10	Dario Franchitti	Target Chip Ganassi Racing	200	3	50	26
8	20	Ed Carpenter	Menards/Vision Racing	200	17	0	24
9	15	Paul Tracy	GEICO/KV Racing Technology	200	13	0	22
10	27	Hideki Mutoh	Formula Dream (Andretti Green Racing)	200	16	0	20
11	36	Alex Tagliani (R)	(All Sport) Conquest Racing	200	33	0	19
12	19	Tomas Scheckter	Mona Vie (Dale Coyne Racing)	200	26	0	18
13	99	Alex Lloyd	HER CGR/SSM Racing	200	11	0	17
14	16	Scott Sharp	Tequila Patrón Panther Racing	200	20	0	16
15	6	Ryan Briscoe	Team Penske	200	2	11	15
16	41	A.J. Foyt IV	ABC Supply/Foyt-Greer Racing	200	19	0	14
17	67	Sarah Fisher	Dollar General/Sarah Fisher Racing	200	21	0	13
18	24	Mike Conway (R)	(Purex) Dreyer & Reinbold Racing	200	27	0	12
19	43	John Andretti	Window World (Dreyer & Reinbold Racing/Richard Petty Motorsports)	200	28	0	12
20	23	Milka Duno	CITGO/Dreyer & Reinbold Racing	199	30	0	12
21	14	Vitor Meira	ABC Supply Co. A.J. Foyt Racing	173 (Contact)	14	0	12
22	2	Raphael Matos (R)	US Air Force Luczo Dragon	173 (Contact)	12	0	12
23	18	Justin Wilson	Z-Line Designs (Dale Coyne Racing)	160 (Contact)	15	0	12
24	13	E.J. Viso	PDVSA HVM Racing	139 (Steering)[39]	29	0	12
25	00	Nelson Philippe (R)	i drive green HVM Racing	130 (Contact)	31	0	10
26	17	Oriol Servia	The Rahal Letterman DAFCA Special	98 (Fuel Pump)[40]	25	0	10
27	11	Tony Kanaan	Team 7-Eleven (Andretti Green Racing)	97 (Contact)	6	0	10
28	06	Robert Doornbos (R)	(Hole in the Wall Camps) Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing	85 (Contact)	23	0	10
29	44	Davey Hamilton	Hewlett Packard (Dreyer & Reinbold Racing/Kingdom Racing)	79 (Contact)	22	0	10
30	26	Marco Andretti	Team Venom Energy (Andretti Green Racing)	56 (Handling)	8	0	10
31	02	Graham Rahal	McDonald’s Racing Team (Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing)	55 (Contact)	4	0	10
32	21	Ryan Hunter-Reay	IZOD/William Rast/Vision Racing	19 (Contact)	32	0	10
33	5	Mario Moraes	Azul Tequila–Votorantim–KV Racing Technology	0 (Contact)	7	0	10
Race average speed: 150.318 mph (241.913 km/h)

Next Up:

The ABC Supply Co. AJ FOYT 225 at Milwaukee

Qualifying: Saturday May 30 (6pm on VERSUS)

Race: Sunday May 31 (3:30pm on ABC)

We will have a pre-race update right here on Midwest Sports Fans!

The weekend has finally arrived and we want to present one last post on the Greatest Spectacle in Racing, giving you some insight into the actual details of this year’s event as well as the story behind this blogger’s obsession with the Indianapolis 500.

My first memory of IndyCar racing is the thrilling end to the 1982 race where Gordon Johncock and Rick Mears battled the last few laps and ended with Johncock winning his 2nd Indianapolis 500. As a 9 year old boy, I could hear the drama…and the engines and excitement on the TV, but I didn’t get the bug in 1982.

In 1989, my father told me we were going to go the Indianapolis 500. Living in Cincinnati, that meant a 2 hour drive to something I wasn’t really sure I would enjoy. I thought about getting up early, leaving at 6am and heading off to this big old loud place where I would sit for 500 miles and hope my dad was enjoying himself.

I was certain he would be the only one.

Our tickets that year were in the Backstretch Bleachers, and our ticket price was $18.00. Our seats were on the top row, and we had an amazing view of of the infield and the madness that happened back then. It’s certainly a lot more tame these days. In fact, in 1989, I saw a woman on top of an RV that was parked in the infield, surrounded by drunk men on the ground, undress completely. This was still 2 hours before the race, and was about the time I started to feel at home.

As a 15 year old boy, I was in my happy place. But that alone wouldn’t have been enough to keep me coming back…and it’s a good thing, because that was the last time I would witness such an exhibition.

My real love for the speedway came as the cars went by for the first time. They took their warm up laps and I will never forget hearing the engines roar as the cars crept by. Seeing them weave back and forth, bringing warmth into the tires and hearing them hammer the throttle just a touch was incredible.

After a few warm up laps, the field of 33 cars got into formation and heading out of turn 2 and down the backstretch I saw 11 rows form up into the most beautiful pack of machines I had ever seen. They passed by me around 90 miles per hour and it seemed like slow motion to me. I remember smiling and feeling the hair on my arms standing straight up. The flag went green and the race was on. In many ways, my life would never be the same again.

My father and I will celebrate our 21st consecutive Indianapolis 500 this Sunday. This will be the third year in a row where we sit apart at the speedway. Once I moved to Indianapolis in 2006, logistically and socially it became more difficult to retain the tradition of sitting together. But on this Sunday, as in the 21 previous race days, I will think of all the great memories we have shared there.

I will remember why I am there, and who took me back in 1989 and gave me a passion that can carry me through life’s difficult moments. No matter how bad it gets, there’s a hell of a man behind me…and there’s always the Month of May.

Dad, this post is dedicated to you for being a tremendous father, a legendary man, and a great race day partner for all these years. Thanks.

Here is all you need to know for the 2009 Indianapolis 500, the 93rd Running.

When: Sunday May 24th 1pm Eastern

TV: ABC pre-race starts at noon. Versus will cover Post Race duties immediately following.

Where: Indianapolis Motor Speedway

Weather: As of 10:30am on 5/22: 30% Chance of Isolated Showers with more rain later in the day. Rain looks to arrive, if it will around the 2pm hour. I am relatively confident we will get the race fully completed. If the race gets to 100 laps, and rain hits the speedway it could be called as an official race. IF rain comes less than half way, and it gets called, it would go on the next possible day. I am hoping that’s just trivial information, more than something we will need to understand.

Starting Field:

Here is the official starting field for the Indianapolis 500.

Thanks for reading our 2009 Indianapolis 500 posts this week. To see the entire list of posts we’ve published, look up near the top of the sidebar. I hope they help you enjoy this weekend’s race just a bit more. I am looking forward to my 21st 500, and hope there are at least 21 more in my future. God Speed to all race fans making the journey…and to the 33 drivers in the race.

And God Bless the troops who protect this Nation with their lives.

For pictures and more on Race Day: set your twitter radars here and follow me all day long.

Check Back Tuesday for our 2009 Indy 500 recap.

Dateline: Indianapolis Motor Speedway

In the last edition of our starting field analysis, we look at some of the drivers who have raced here before, but have not tasted the milk after 800 perfect left turns and 500 miles of racing. In previous posts we looked at the rookies, the previous winners, and the women that will make up part of the starting grid come Sunday. Let’s now take a look at some of the other drivers in the field who should be fun to watch…for various reasons.

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Pos. 28

John Andretti

Car # 43
D/H/F
Speed/Time: 221.316/2:42.6635

John Andretti comes to Indianapolis to run the 500 for his 10th time. His best finish came in 1991 when he finished 7th. After a dramatic bump day last Sunday, which saw him fighting all day long just to make the show, he now switches focus to race day. He is very experienced behind the wheel of race car and starting from the inside of row ten should pose no problem for the Indy 500 veteran. His entry in the 500 carries a paint scheme and number of someone in all form of motor sports should recognize. “The King”, Richard Petty, has teamed with Dreyer and Reinbold to make his first entry into the world of open wheel racing. Dreyer and Reinbold is a solid IndyCar shop with several cars in this years field, so The King went to the right people to get in the show. Unfortunately, due to the trouble he had getting up to speed all month, I do not expect much out of this Andretti in 2009.

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Pos. 20

Scott Sharp

Car # 16
D/H/F
Speed/Time: 222.162/2:42.0441

Scott Sharp comes to the 500 briefly leaving the ALMS for his return to the Greatest Spectacle in Racing. This former pole sitter will be driving his 15th 500. His best finish was in 2008 in 6th place with Rahal Letterman Racing. This year he teams up with the Panther Racing team (team mate of Dan Wheldon) to try to top the 6th place finish of last year. I think Scott could be one to watch on Sunday as he is comfortable here, and probably has better equipment than he did last year. I would definitely expect a solid top ten from Scott Sharp and the Patron sponsored #16 machine.

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Pos. 13

Paul Tracy

Car # 15
D/H/F
Speed/Time: 223.111/2:41.3545

Paul Tracy has a storied past at the speedway. PT comes into this years May Classic after a 7 year absence from the race. He last ran the race in 2002 where he finished 2nd in a controversial finish with Helio Castroneves. The two were battling for 1st when a yellow flag came out with just laps to go. The field reset based on the positions of the cars when the track went yellow. IndyCar officials ruled that Helio Castroneves was in the lead at that time, therefore being put in P1 and winiing the race. PT’s camp has always disagreed wit that ruling, andthis 7 year absence is as much about the bad taste left in his mouth, as it is about the CART/IRL split that shattered the open wheel racing fan base in 1996. Interesting to note here is that although this is his 6th Indianapolis 500, it is only his second in 14 years. Prior to the 2002 race, he last ran the 500 in 1995. He is fast, gutsy, and has a big chip on his shoulder from the 2002 race. Look for PT to be a contender on race day. If there is a dark horse in the race, my money would be on PT. Panther is a great team…and PT can flat out drive.

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Pos. 6

Tony Kanaan

Car # 11T
D/H/F
Speed/Time: 223.612/2:40.9934

TK is one of those drivers who regardless of what happens, is always at the front. Though I wouldn’t call him a dark horse, I would say of all the non-winners, he is the most likely to walk away with the 500 crown. He is deserving of the win and has a personality as big as can be. He is a classy guy and always comes across in a very educated manner. Though my pick this year is Helio Castroneves, I would be very happy to see his fellow Brazilian win the world’s largest single day sporting event. TK is a deserving 500 champion. If you don’t yet know who to pull for in Sunday’s race…it might as well be TK.

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Tomorrow: MidwestSportsFans.com will have our last post before the madness of the weekend ensues. Be sure to check back tomorrow for our final preview of the 93rd Running of the Indianapolis 500. Very very soon, we will all be singing, “Back home again, in Indiana”

The Loading screen:

I was impressed with the loading time of the application. From click to the home screen it took less than 2 seconds to load the application.

Home:

From here, which is really ground zero for the application, you can see access to the other tabs at the bottom. The Breaking News section is a mobile version of IndyCar.com right on your iPhone. Using the iPhone’s ability to scroll down through dragging your finger on the screen it will bring into view: recent activities, next race and tv schedule, weather forecast, etc.

Video:

The video section will be updated as activity warrants it, and I was impressed with the variation and production quality of these video clips. The picture clarity will depend on whether you are an Edge, 3G or WiFi user. On my 3G iPhone, there was only a three second load time for me to start watching the “Hunter-Reay makes the field” video show above. The clarity of video and sound was normal when compared to viewing YouTube videos on the device and using the AT&T 3G network.

Leaderboard:

Here in my opinion, is where those $.99 cents will be an absolute steal. Using state of the art technology, the IndyCar Series will not only show you real time positions during the race, they will also show you the gap in seconds updated continuously. The tradeoff here, is that it WILL KILL your iPhone battery, so be sure to use it only in short spurts. Whether you’re at the track, or stuck in a car and running errands, you will know in real time where your favorite driver is, and what the field looks like. Notice the Track Map icon?

Track Map:

Though specific details are sketchy here, I assume this is where you will see the Gap in a visual representation. Without there being a race to actually watch yet, I cannot be sure of this but from the layout it makes sense. If that doesn’t happen here, worse case scenario is that you can view the map of the course during the race. Sunday, the 93rd Running of the Indianapolis 500, will be the applications debut with live racing action.

Standings:

The standings tab is pretty self-explanatory. This tab will show you the current standings for the IndyCar Series. Want more information on a particular driver? Just tap the cursor out to the far right.

Driver Information:

This is where you can see the quality of the application itself. Driver info, team information, and a drivers biography. Using the iPhones touch screen, scroll down to read more about each of the drivers that compete in the IndyCar Series. Want to learn more about a team mate? Click on the name, for ex. Danica Patrick…and it takes you to her specific page.

Summary:

In this race fan’s opinion this application hits an absolute home run. Fans of IndyCar racing will love it’s flexible features and unending content that will be pushed out from the IndyCar servers. The price tag is certainly easily swallowed after looking through the pages and information contained inside this powerful handheld application. The looks are stunning, the touch control works flawlessly, and there is little lag time switching between the pages. I am EXTREMELY excited this application has made it’s way to my iPhone and I think you will be too.

Check back tomorrow for more of our continuing Indy 500 preview as we get ever closer to the 93rd Running of the Greatest Spectacle in Racing.

(Pictured: Milka Duno, Sarah Fisher, Danica Patrick)

Dateline: Indianpolis Motor Speedway

The Women:

Once again there will be three women starting the Indianapolis 500. In this edition of our Indy 500 preview we will take a look at those women as well as their starting positions and my opinions on there chances of winning the Indianapolis 500.

Pos. 21

Sarah Fisher

Car # 67
D/H/F
Speed/Time: 222.082/2:42.1022

Sarah Fisher is back for her 8th Indianapolis 500, and her second as team owner. She carries a solid sponsorship program this year as Dollar General has signed on for a series of races in the 2009 season. One of my standout memories of Sarah Fisher unfortunately came from the 2000 race when she collided with the other woman racer (Lyn St. James) taking them both out on lap 74. It was probably the worst case scenario for both drivers, as their were jokes all along the front straight after the accident. But this year she is back and ready to compete. Her qualifying speed of 222.082 puts her just 1/2 a second behind the pace for the Pole sitter, Helio Castroneves. If things go right for her, and her pit crew is able to adequately and quickly service her car and get her back out to the speedway, I would look to see Sarah with a solid top 15 finish.

Pos. 10

Danica Patrick

Car # 7
D/H/F
Speed/Time: 222.882/2:41.5205

Darling Danica gears up for her 6th Indy 500. Her previous best finish was 4th in 2005, where she became the first woman to ever lead the Indianapolis 500. She also became the first woman to win a major league open wheel racing event in 2008 where she won at Twin Ring Motegi in Japan. Back again with the Andretti Green team and with rumors abound of a jump to NASCAR at seasons end, I expect to see Danica finish in the top 5. She has done well here, and when she controls her outcome she has an average finishing position of 6. Last year due to contact and the infamous pit lane stroll down to Ryan Briscoes pit stall after some contact, she finished 22nd. If there were ever to be a woman to win the Indianapolis 500, I think it could be Danica. So if you’re looking for a longshot, look no further than the #7 car sponsored by Boost Mobile.

Indy 500 coverage continues right here as we take a look at the other notables in this years race. Stay tuned to MidwestSportsFans.com for up to date Indy 500 coverage.

(Pictured: The starting lineup in 1911, the first and only time there has been a rookie only starting field.)

Dateline: Indianapolis, Indiana

The Rookies:

In the first of a four part look into the field for the 93rd running of the Indianapolis 500 we will take a look at the drivers who are making their Indy debut this coming Sunday. In later editions we will look at the past winners, the women in the 500, and finally a look at the other notables in this years race.

Pos. 33

Pos. 31

Nelson Philippe

Car # 00
D/H/F
Speed/Time: 220.754/2:43.0778

Nelson Philippe is a French driver who also got his start in go karts. Racing go karts from 1998-2002 gave him enough seat time and experience to move up to the Barber Dodge Pro Series in 2003. He finished the season with one podium and four top five finishes. In 2004, Philippe became the youngest to ever drive a Champ Car when he was signed to the Rocketsports team at age 17. With experience in the Champ Car series he has experience on ovals and road courses and now finds himself in the Greatest Spectacle in Racing.

Pos. 27

Mike Conway

Car # 24
D/H/F
Speed/Time: 221.417/2:42.5889

Mike Conway comes to the Indy 500 from the GP2 series. This English driver also got his start in karting around 8 years of age. With experience in UK Formula Ford he moved up to the Formula Renault UK championship in 2003. In 2004 he was the Formula Renault UK Champion and moved up to the British F3 championship in 2005. In 2006, he won that Championship and had been in GP2 until this season when he made the jump to the IndyCar Series. One thing of note, Mike Conway has yet to run an oval race this season without ending up in the wall during the race. He will be one to watch our for from a fan perspective…and one to stay away from if you’re a driver.

Pos. 23

Robert Doornbos

Car # 06T
D/H/F
Speed/Time: 221.692/2:42.3877

This Dutch driver started racing in 1999 in the Formula Ford 1800 Benelux series. He started as a semi-professional tennis player in the Netherlands when he was invited to attend a Formula 1 Grand Prix. There he met former Formula 1 champion and Indy 500 champion Jacques Villeneuve and he recommended that Robert try a Formula Ford, as he was too old to start karting. Obviously “Bobby D” took to the type of racing as he moved from Formula Ford to Formula 1 in just 6 seasons. He spent 205 and 2006 in the Formula 1 championship and moved to Champ Car in 2007. In 2008 he raced in the Superleague Formula as well as representing the Netherlands in the A1GP. He makes the move to IndyCars and the famed Newman Haas Lanigan racing team.

Pos. 12

Raphael Matos

Car # 2
D/H/F
Speed/Time: 223.429/2:41.1252

“Rapha” got his start in karting in his native Brazil. He came to the States in 2002 and competed in the Skip Barber Formula Dodge championship which he won in 2003. He went to the Star Mazda series for 2004 and 2005. He again found himself a Champion in 2005 and made the transition to the Champ Car Atlantic Series in 2006 and 2007. He won the Championship in 2007 and moved to the Firestone Indy Lights Championship in 2008. He was once again successful in the new series and was the Champion for 2008. In 2009, he comes to the IndyCar series with the Luczo Dragon team which is owned by Jay Penske. Jay is the youngest son of Team Penske owner, Roger Penske. If there is a rookie who has a legitimate shot at winning this installment of the 500, I would put a big checkmark next to Rapha on your race day program.

Check back for the next installment in our four part series on this years field. Next, we will take a look at the previous winners of the 500 who are in the 2009 edition and look at their histories and chances for once again drinking the milk in victory lane.

The Winners:

Here, we continue our look into the starting field of the 93rd running of the Indianapolis 500. In this edition we look at the four previous winners who will be fighting for another shot at immortality on the Borg Warner Trophy (pictured above) and a nice cool drink of milk in victory lane. The Indianapolis 500 is at 1pm this Sunday, May 24th. It’s on ABC and the pre-race starts at Noon Eastern, with the scheduled start of 1pm.

Pos. 5

Scott Dixon

Car # 9
D/H/F
Speed/Time: 223.867/2:40.8098

The 2008 Indy 500 winner and IndyCar series champion will find himself in a familiar place come race day. Rolling off from the 5th spot in the grid, this New Zealander will be a contender on race day and should definitely be one to watch. Scott Dixon has NEVER raced in a series where hasn’t wont the championship. When the pressure is on, this guy is the one you want behind the wheel. Starting from the middle of Row 2 he should have a clear view of Turn 1 on Lap 1. Barring any first turn disasters, keep your eye on the #9 Target entry piloted by Scott Dixon. He will more than likely be among the leaders all day.

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Pos. 3

Dario Franchitti

Car # 10
D/H/F
Speed/Time: 224.010/2:40.7068

Dario Franchitti comes to his 6th Indy 500, back from his single season running in NASCAR. His previous 500 starts have been with the Andretti Green organization, but it didn’t take the former Champion long to get comfortable to his new seat. He rolls off the grid on Sunday from the front row on the outside in P3. When he won the race in 2007, it was called by rain and was less than the 500 miles. Would he have been there at the end of those 500 miles? We will never know. Will he be there at the end of this years 500 miles? I don’t think so. Look for a strong start from the former champion but a pit issue or contact to keep him from taking his second 500 crown. Why? Because, Ashley Judd annoys me to death and I don’t want to see her talking on the monitors anymore than we have to.

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Pos. 1

Helio Castroneves

Car # 3
D/H/F
Speed/Time: 224.864/2:40.0967

The past six months have been absolute hell for the two-time Indy 500 winner. He spent months agonizing over a squabble with the IRS regarding a tax issue. It was resolved with a not guilty verdict, and he now finds himself back where he belongs. Helio won the 500 in 2001 and 2002 and has been in the top 5 for 5 of his 8 previous starts. He has been among the quickest all month long and was certainly the fastest on Pole Day at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. With the drama behind him of the courtroom, and no one in front of him as he starts this years 500, look for a strong showing from the two time winner. How strong? Look for a three time champion come Sunday afternoon. Helio Castroneves is my pick for the 2009 race. Helio, go get ‘em!

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Stay tuned to MidwestSportsFans.com as we continue our in depth look into the starting field for the 93rd Indianapolis 500. Next we will take a look at the women in the 500. Danica Patrick, Sarah Fisher, and Milka Duno will be carrying the banner for female motor sports fans everywhere come race day. Check back soon for what to watch for from the three women who are the female faces of the 500.

Dateline: Indy 500 INDIANAPOLIS

You like drama? Last second, hair raising, edge-of-your-seat drama? Then you had to love the action at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway during the first weekend of qualifications for the 93rd Indianapolis 500.

On an overcast windy day in the month of May, a Brazilian race car driver, who just weeks ago was waiting to hear from a Federal jury regarding his incarceration or his freedom, stood the test of time and was known as the fastest in the land. Helio Castroneves, the two time Indy 500 winner and winner of 2007′s Dancing With the Stars, proved that he was too fast. Driving a four lap average of 224.864mph, Helio took his car to the top of the pole. In doing so, he edged his Team Penske team mate Ryan Briscoe and slid the #6 car into P2.

Shortly before the gun to end the first day of qualifications, Ryan Briscoe withdrew his P2 entry and went back out to re-qualify the #6. It was a gutsy move, but it showed once again the meaning of this race to the entire Penske Organization. For any other race, a one-two qualifying order is pristine…but at the 500, it’s a whole new level. Briscoe ended up P2 after the 2nd attempt. It was a gamble, but it didn’t hurt them at all after it was all said and done.

Justin Wilson, who had taken the first qualification attempt of the day, only to be bumped later in the day went out for the final run of the afternoon. As the gun sounded, Wilson didn’t have the speed to qualify on day one. The first 11 had qualified.

SUNDAY: DAY 2 of Qualifications

Another day of drama waited for the next 11 to qualify. There were several moments of drama and a lot of bumping as the fastest 11 of the 2nd day tried to get into the show. There were two moments, I will never forget about the 2nd day of qualifications this year.

Paul Tracy in the 2nd KVRT entry had qualified at 222.7 earlier in the day. Due to concerns in staying withing the teams budget for the month, they had intended to go out, qualify for the show and save tires for close to race day for practice and tuning. A few hours before the 6pm ending to the day, the GEICO team of Paul Tracy sent a text message to the CEO of Geico telling him they know they could do a better lap and push themselves further up the grid. The text message came back and said something to the effect of, “Go get ‘em”. This was a risky move for the Canadian who had already solidly qualified for the race, in a car where he was running on a shoestring budget. If he had put the Geico machine into the wall, who knows what could have happened for the rest of the month. But being risky, is what Paul Tracy has come to be known for. They KV Racing team withdrew Paul’s qualifying time of 222.7 and sent him back out. He ran four solid laps and did in factpush his spot up further into the grid. At 223.111mph he drove the second quickest qualification time of the 2nd day and move up 4 spots from where he had previously qualified. For GEICO, andthe CEO who authorized the second attempt, it was a brilliant move. These teams pay a lot of money for sponsorship, andto let a thousand dollars ( about a set of new Firestone Firehawk Indy tires) keep your 220mph billboard in the garage would have been a shame. Instead that red, white, and blue GEICO machine rolled through the 2.5 mile oval and placed himself solidly in the Indianapolis 500. Money well spent, if even a few people switch to Geico.

The second moment I will remember came just before the end of the day. With just minutes remaining, Scott Sharp and the PATRON machine rolled into the qualification line. There were two cars ahead of him, and time wasn’t on his side. Scott Sharp is also a full time driver in the American Le Mans Series andthey have a race next weekend…he needed to get in now. EJ Viso, who was in line in front of Paul Tracy had already qualified and could have gone out to try to re-qualify and kept Scott off the grid. However, great sportsmanship ensued, and as the gun was being cocked, Scott Sharp rolled out onto the famed speedway. With a four lap average of 222.162, Scott Sharp secured his spot in the Greatest Spectacle in Racing, and will be able to continue with his commitments to the ALMS. My hat goes off to EJ Viso and HVM racing for a move that was 100% class.

It was a great weekend of qualifications and now there are 22 qualifiers in the show. They are:

Row 1
Pos. 1 Helio Castroneves Car # 3 D/H/F Speed/Time: 224.864/2:40.0967	Pos. 2 Ryan Briscoe Car # 6 D/H/F Speed/Time: 224.083/2:40.6546	Pos. 3 Dario Franchitti Car # 10 D/H/F Speed/Time: 224.010/2:40.7068
Row 2
Pos. 4 Graham Rahal Car # 02 D/H/F Speed/Time: 223.954/2:40.7470	Pos. 5 Scott Dixon Car # 9 D/H/F Speed/Time: 223.867/2:40.8098	Pos. 6 Tony Kanaan Car # 11T D/H/F Speed/Time: 223.612/2:40.9934
Row 3
Pos. 7 Mario Moraes Car # 5 D/H/F Speed/Time: 223.331/2:41.1958	Pos. 8 Marco Andretti Car # 26 D/H/F Speed/Time: 223.114/2:41.3522	Pos. 9 Will Power Car # 12 D/H/F Speed/Time: 223.028/2:41.4146
Row 4
Pos. 10 Danica Patrick Car # 7 D/H/F Speed/Time: 222.882/2:41.5205	Pos. 11 Alex Lloyd Car # 99 D/H/F Speed/Time: 222.622/2:41.7093	Pos. 12 Raphael Matos Car # 2 D/H/F Speed/Time: 223.429/2:41.1252
Row 5
Pos. 13 Paul Tracy Car # 15 D/H/F Speed/Time: 223.111/2:41.3545	Pos. 14 Vitor Meira Car # 14 D/H/F Speed/Time: 223.054/2:41.3958	Pos. 15 Justin Wilson Car # 18 D/H/F Speed/Time: 222.903/2:41.5051
Row 6
Pos. 16 Hideki Mutoh Car # 27 D/H/F Speed/Time: 222.805/2:41.5764	Pos. 17 Ed Carpenter Car # 20 D/H/F Speed/Time: 222.780/2:41.5942	Pos. 18 Dan Wheldon Car # 4 D/H/F Speed/Time: 222.777/2:41.5969
Row 7
Pos. 19 AJ Foyt IV Car # 41 D/H/F Speed/Time: 222.586/2:41.7355	Pos. 20 Scott Sharp Car # 16 D/H/F Speed/Time: 222.162/2:42.0441	Pos. 21 Sarah Fisher Car # 67 D/H/F Speed/Time: 222.082/2:42.1022
Row 8
Pos. 22 Davey Hamilton Car # 44 D/H/F Speed/Time: 221.956/2:42.1942

So, with 22 of the 33 drivers filled in here is the schedule for the 2nd week of Qualifications.

Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday – NO TRACK ACTIVITY

Thursday, Friday – PRACTICE from 12-6pm

Saturday – Day 3 of Qualifications. The next 11 qualify to fill the field.

Sunday – Day 4 of Qualifications. BUMP DAY! For the drivers who haven’t yet found the speed to make the show, this is their last chance.

Check back next Monday for the Indy 500 Preview and follow me on Twitter for any breaking news or updates pertaining to the 93rd running of the Indianapolis 500.