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When To Lift At Indianapolis

Knowing when and when not to lift your foot is the difference between drinking the milk and hitting the wall at the Brickyard.Tags: Indianapolis 500, Indy 500, Don't Lift

When To Lift At Indianapolis

INDIANAPOLIS -- The Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame Museum is always a treat for racing fans, and at $5, it's an unbelievable bargain.

But recently, the good folks at 16th and Georgetown have managed to pack even more value into that modest entrance fee.

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John Oreovicz/ESPN.com "Big Oly" was the vehicle Parnelli Jones drove in his off-road racing years and Parnelli calls it his personal favorite in the collection.

A year ago, the Hall of Fame assembled 70 Indianapolis 500 winning cars for a unique 90-day exhibition to conclude the Speedway's three-year-long Centennial Era celebration.

This year's special exhibit isn't as extensive, but it is almost just as appealing: The Hall of Fame has acquired the Vel's Parnelli Jones Collection, which until recently was privately displayed in Torrance, Calif.

The Jones collection includes several important race cars that Parnelli Jones drove, in addition to numerous Indy cars and Formula One cars built under the Parnelli name.

VPJR was formed in 1967 and fielded entries throughout the 1970s in USAC Indy cars, Formula 5000 and Formula One. The 1972-73 lineup, known as the Vel's Parnelli Jones Superteam and featuring drivers Al Unser, Joe Leonard and Mario Andretti, was the precursor to today's multicar efforts by the likes of Penske Racing and Ganassi Racing.

Perhaps the most significant car in the Parnelli collection is the oldest -- the Watson/Offy roadster that Jones drove to the first 150 mph lap in the history of IMS in 1962, and to victory in the Indy 500 a year later.

Jones will celebrate his 1962 pole position and 150 mph milestone by running a demonstration lap at 4 p.m. on Pole Day on Saturday, immediately prior to the Fast Nine pole qualifying shootout. He will also sign autographs at the Hall of Fame on Wednesday, May 23 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Taking pride of place on a central pedestal in the entrance to the museum is the 1964 Lotus-Ford that Jim Clark drove to pole position at Indianapolis. Later that summer, Jones took over the rear-engine special and won an Indy car race at the Milwaukee Mile.

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John Oreovicz/ESPN.comA rich history of Indianapolis 500 winners is on display at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame with cars spanning a century.

Another Lotus on display is the 1968 Type 56 "wedge" car powered by a turbine engine. Joe Leonard took pole position at Indianapolis in this car and led the race until being sidelined by a mechanical failure with nine laps remaining.

VPJR fielded the Colt-Ford in which Al Unser won the Indianapolis 500 and USAC championship in 1970. That car, along with the car that Unser took to a second consecutive Indianapolis victory in 1971, is currently on display at IMS.

A less successful (but perhaps more unique) Indy car is the 1972 Parnelli chassis designed by Maurice Phillipe. The IMS Hall of Fame currently boasts three of the so-called "dihedral" cars, including one in Mario Andretti livery that features the small wings that angle out of the sides of the chassis.

Expected to arrive soon is the Parnelli VPJ4B Formula One car that Mario Andretti campaigned for Vel's Parnelli Jones Racing from 1974 to '76. Something completely different is "Big Oly," the Ford Bronco-based off-road racing truck that Jones drove to two consecutive victories in the Baja 1000.

Another machine with a notable pedigree is the King-Ford USAC dirt car in which Unser won four consecutive Hoosier Hundred races on the dirt mile at the Indiana State Fairgrounds.

These eight vehicles are currently housed in a separate wing of the Hall of Fame. But the rest of the museum is as worthwhile as ever, with an array of cars and motorcycles from the past century that naturally concentrates on notable Indy cars.

Currently, the Marmon Wasp that won the first Indianapolis 500 is displayed next to the Dallara IR07 that Dan Wheldon won the 100th anniversary race in last year.

INDIANAPOLIS -- The opening sequence of ABC's broadcast of the 2011 Indianapolis 500 was nominated for a Sports Emmy Award.

Now you can be part of the cinematic introduction to this year's race, which no doubt will be bigger and better than ever before.

ESPN and ABC have put out a casting call seeking extras to participate in a video production set to take place Wednesday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

There's no pay involved, but it's your chance to show your passion for The Greatest Spectacle in Racing -- and possibly see yourself on television when ABC's race broadcast kicks off at 11 a.m. ET on May 27.

Prospective extras should plan to be at IMS from 8-11:30 a.m. Enter through the track's main entrance on West 16th Street -- the tunnel between Turns 1 and 2. All ages are welcome.

Participants are being asked to dress like race fans -- wear IndyCar gear and bring along coolers, backpacks, scanners and headphones -- just as if you were attending the Indianapolis 500.

Because multiple scenes will be shot, ABC is requesting that everyone bring along a spare T-shirt or polo shirt to swap out. Beverages and snacks will be provided.

It promises to be a great experience for true Indianapolis fans -- and maybe a chance to become part of ABC's 48-year history of Indianapolis 500 coverage.

If you're interested, send an email to iwanttobeanindyextra@gmail.com for additional details.

Oh, and break a leg!

Robert Laberge/Getty ImagesJosef Newgarden will start the Long Beach Grand Prix on the front row alongside Dario Franchitti.

LONG BEACH, Calif. -- The introduction of a new chassis and engine formula was expected to shake up the ranks in the Izod IndyCar Series.

But no one expected a rookie running for the sport's smallest team to emerge as a front-runner.

Driving for Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing, Josef Newgarden is the best story of the early IndyCar season. The 21-year-old from Nashville has had moments of brilliance in each of the three weekends to date, and he'll start the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach from the outside of the front row.

Newgarden didn't qualify that far up front; he actually managed the seventh-fastest time and was elevated five places because the cars that qualified ahead of him using Chevrolet power have been assessed a 10-place grid penalty for unauthorized engine changes.

But that doesn't diminish his achievement -- or the SFHR team's -- a single bit.

Former driver-turned-owner Fisher endured the disappointment of losing her sponsorship from Dollar General stores over the offseason, and the No. 67 SFHR car looks pretty plain in its white-and-blue paint.

But the team showed that a small group of quality people teamed with a talented and hungry driver can produce results.

"Josef has really come in and energized our team," said team owner Fisher. "He's amazingly mature and professional, and we're really enjoying working with him. To deliver this kind of a result shows the kind of potential we have."

Four-time series champion Dario Franchitti will start from pole position, but he's not worried about having the rookie alongside.

"Believe me, we've proven time and time again that whether you're a rookie or a veteran, you can screw up just as well," Franchitti remarked. "He'll be fine. He's a good driver who belongs at this level, and he proved it again today."

Stars come out to honor Jim Hall

American Le Mans Series sports cars and the Izod IndyCar Series have become a hot ticket at the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach.

Southern California is America's hot spot for car culture, and the pairing of open-wheel formula cars and sports cars has made the Long Beach race weekend only more appealing. While Friday rain had spectators seeking shelter inside the Lifestyle Expo, the return of sunshine on Saturday brought them back in droves to finally enjoy on-track action.

The sports car and Indy car worlds collided Thursday night at the fourth annual Road Racing Drivers Club dinner at the Long Beach Hilton. This year's honoree was Jim Hall, and a pair of Hall's most iconic Chaparral cars -- a 1966 2E Can-Am sports car and the Indianapolis 500-winning 1980 2K -- were proudly on display.

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John OreoviczTwo of Jim Hall's most iconic Chaparral cars -- a 1966 2E Can-Am sports car, top, and the Indianapolis
500-winning 1980 2K -- took center stage Thursday in Long Beach.

The normally reserved Hall was talkative and virtually beaming throughout the evening, which was hosted by RRDC President Bobby Rahal. Several of Hall's drivers and competitors took the stage to offer appreciations, including Roger Penske, Johnny Rutherford, Brian Redman and Gil de Ferran.

"Jim Hall is an icon in this sport, and it was a pleasure to sit down with him and listen to the recollections of an extraordinary visionary from such an important era in our sport," said Rahal.

Hall was a successful driver who made a dozen Formula One starts in addition to his success on the American sports car scene. But he's most famous for co-founding the Chaparral marque, which produced a series of successful sports cars with backdoor technical support from Chevrolet throughout the 1960s.

Chaparral introduced the aerodynamic wing to sports cars, and the 1970 2J used a fan to create downforce, a concept that was later copied by the Brabham BT46B that Niki Lauda drove to victory in the 1978 Swedish Grand Prix.

The last Chaparral, the 2K, was the first Indy car to use underbody ground effect tunnels. Hall's concept was drawn and developed by John Barnard, who went on to design a series of F1 championship-winning cars for McLaren, Ferrari and Benetton.

"It's fabulous to be honored by your peers, and that's really what it is here tonight," said Hall. "There are so many of the real racers here, and I'm honored to be with them. It's terrific to follow the three guys who were previously recognized by the RRDC [Dan Gurney, Parnelli Jones and Penske], and to see so many of the other people in the sport who were willing to come here and support this event just makes you really proud."

The RRDC Long Beach dinner has become one of the most popular stops on the banquet circuit, with someone famous or historically significant at almost every table.

Six Indianapolis 500 winners were present (Rahal, de Ferran, Rutherford, Jones, Rick Mears, Danny Sullivan and Franchitti), representing 13 Indy wins.

AP Photo/Andre PennerRubens Barrichello said racing on ovals is one of the challenges he's looking forward to in the Izod IndyCar Series.

INDIANAPOLIS -- Formula One's most experienced driver is switching to Indy cars.

Rubens Barrichello, with 322 F1 starts and 11 Grand Prix victories, confirmed Thursday in a news conference in Sao Paulo that he will contest the full 2012 Izod IndyCar Series season. The 39-year-old Brazilian will drive the No. 8 Dallara-Chevrolet for KV Racing Technology with sponsorship from Embrase.

KVRT also announced a two-year contract extension for Tony Kanaan, the 2004 IndyCar Series champion, who is beginning his second season with the team. E.J. Viso will drive KVRT's third entry with a new sponsorship package from CITGO.

Barrichello tested KVRT's Dallara-Chevrolet at Sebring International Raceway from Jan. 30 through Feb. 1 and ran a subsequent test at Infineon Raceway later in February.

Kanaan and Barrichello are close friends (and godfather to each other's children), and Kanaan joked that he convinced Barrichello to test by tweeting him a picture of the new Dallara Indy car.

But he actually had been working on his friend to make the switch to American racing for quite some time.

"What people don't realize is how many years I've been bugging him to do this," Kanaan said. "It's been going on for the last three years. This year, with the unfortunate situation of not getting the job [with Williams F1], he accepted. But it's something I've been working on him for a long time.

"I knew he was going to love the car," Kanaan added. "He's a real racer, and he wants to win races. Over there he didn't have a chance. Here he will."

Barrichello is no stranger to Indy car racing, having attended several CART and IndyCar Series races over the past 15 years at venues including Milwaukee and Indianapolis.

His interest in competing in oval racing was questioned, especially after some of his remarks promising his family he would not compete on those tracks were widely publicized.

But Barrichello said Thursday that racing on ovals is a key attraction of the Indy car challenge.

"It's something very new to me, and even with 19 years of experience, I will start as a rookie," Barrichello said. "But I think I will get better as the year progresses. I will keep my feet on the ground and work as hard as I can.

"I am very competitive, so, of course, I want to do well," he added. "But how well I'm going to do, I guess we are going to see sometime soon."

KVRT co-owners Jimmy Vasser and Kevin Kalkhoven are hopeful the addition of Barrichello will elevate their team to the level of perennial Indy car powerhouses Ganassi Racing and Penske Racing.

"With Tony's expertise on ovals and Rubens' ability to set the car up for road courses, I think it's going to be a very powerful combination," said Vasser, who won the 1996 CART-sanctioned Indy car championship. "We do have the challenge of the ovals, but with Tony's experience and little bit of knowledge that I might be able to impart, I think Rubens will be just fine.

"The sky is the limit for our team, and I think victories are in our future."

News of Barrichello's confirmation for the full season was applauded by his IndyCar Series competitors.

"Great news," four-time IndyCar Series champion Dario Franchitti said. "I think the competition level just went up again."

"It's good for the series, and you can only see it going up," said Will Power. "New car, new teams, even greater depth in driver talent. I think it's great."

Perhaps the happiest person about Barrichello's announcement was INDYCAR CEO Randy Bernard, who unexpectedly has an additional worldwide star (and more than 1.4 million Twitter followers) on board.

Bernard has compared Barrichello's arrival in Indy cars to those of former F1 world champions Emerson Fittipaldi (in 1984) and Nigel Mansell (1993).

"It's an exciting day for the IZOD IndyCar Series and a positive step to start 2012," Bernard said. "We've said all along that one of the most important factors that will make the IZOD IndyCar Series successful is having the best drivers in the world, and there's not a person in the world who knows racing that wouldn't tell you that Rubens Barrichello is one of the greatest drivers of all time.

"I think it's been interesting to hear the response of the other drivers," Bernard added. "It's been, 'This is great for us because it will show how good all of our drivers are.'"

Barrichello's first Indy car race is the March 25 Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg.

DETROIT -- The automotive industry is getting back its swagger.

Take a look around the floor at the North American International Auto Show, where you'll find a 650-horsepower Mustang and a 580-horsepower Camaro, both totally street legal and for sale off the showroom floor.

That's more power than most racing cars have in this day and age.

But the show of brute force is indicative of an industry-wide shift back toward power and performance after a couple of lean years geared toward fuel efficiency and environmental friendliness.

From a racing standpoint, perhaps the most important new car on display at Detroit was the redesigned 2013 Ford Fusion. The midsize four-door sedan has sleek lines that were compared to those seen on Jaguars and Aston Martins.

Ford's NASCAR Sprint Cup Series cars are badged as Fusions, which made me wonder how the 2013 version would translate to NASCAR's boxy Car of Tomorrow specifications. But Ford Racing boss Jamie Allison assured me that next year's Ford Cup entry "will look exactly like the car you and I are looking at today."

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AP Photo/Carlos OsorioThe next-generation Ford Fusion was drawing plenty of attention at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit.

"It's stunning," he added. "This car carries the new face of Ford and we've been working with NASCAR because we race Fusions in the Cup series. Next year, you're going to see this new face of Ford on a car that is unique and identifiable as a Ford on the track."

Ford Racing officials are excited about the prospect of much more distinct differences in identity between the four competing marques in the Sprint Cup Series next year. But they discounted speculation that the company is looking to rejoin Chevrolet as an engine manufacturer in the Izod IndyCar Series, even though the new turbocharged engine formula would be a perfect platform to promote Ford's EcoBoost engine technology.

"There were times in our history when we were very active in open-wheel racing," Allison said. "We are now at this time focused on production-based racing and technologies. We want the cars we race to be evocative of the cars in people's driveways. Open-wheel racing, and the demands of what it requires to succeed with purpose-built applications, are right now not a priority for us."

Allison is also excited about Courtney Force's NHRA Funny Car debut in a John Force Racing Mustang.

"Courtney is absolutely a delight," he said. "We saw what [sister] Ashley [Force Hood] did when she came into the sport. We are very excited. She has a lot of potential. I've been to a couple of her tests and I think it's going to be a great year for John Force Racing and all the Fords."

Over at Honda, I had a long talk with Honda Performance Development president Erik Berkman, who filled me in on the status of the Honda IndyCar program.

"We're comfortable with how things are progressing," Berkman said. "We had to compromise a bit when the displacement was reduced from 2.4 to 2.2 liters, and that kind of squandered the early advantage we had gained by being the first to commit to building an engine for the V-6 turbo formula."

Berkman was a new car project leader for Honda when HPD last had engine building competition in Indy cars. He is quickly discovering the pratfalls that come with not being the IndyCar Series' sole engine supplier.

A year ago, before Chevrolet and Lotus also committed to IndyCar to produce engines for the 2012 season, Berkman told me he hoped to avoid the kind of "arms race" that characterized the war between Toyota and Honda in CART from 2000-02 and the IRL IndyCar Series from 2003-05.

In CART, Toyota began financing teams like Ganassi Racing, while Honda purchased chassis for its key teams and hired Wirth Research to develop the basic Dallara IRL chassis for its flagship team, Andretti Green Racing.

A complicating factor is that the INDYCAR 2012 engine rules have not been finalized and aren't expected to be done until the end of the month.

"Everyone is worried that we're not showing our hand or Ilmor [Chevrolet] isn't showing their hand, but how can we when major targets like minimum weight are still yet to be defined?" Berkman said. "We haven't locked in our final spec for the first race yet, and with the rules being finished so late, we may not have a definitive specification until the third or fourth race."

Eight of the 10 engines Honda intends to supply for a hypothetical 25-car grid have been claimed: Four to Ganassi Racing, two to Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, one to AJ Foyt Racing and one to Sam Schmidt Motorsports. Berkman is still deciding how to allocate the final two engines, which had originally been intended for Newman/Haas Racing.

"My phone has been ringing off the hook," he said with a laugh.

INDIANAPOLIS -- Jim Rathmann was considered one of the last links to Indy car racing's roadster era.

But in many ways, Rathmann, who died Wednesday at the age of 83, was ahead of his time. In fact, he should probably be considered the sport's first superspeedway specialist.

Two of Rathmann's three official Indy car race wins were at fearsomely fast ovals, topped by his victory in the 1960 Indianapolis 500. That race is considered a classic, with an intense duel between Rathmann and Rodger Ward that some Indy old-timers believe was the finest two-man battle in the hundred-year history of the great race.

The 1960 500 featured a record 29 lead changes; Rathmann led 12 times for exactly half of the 200 laps on the way to his triumph.

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AP PhotoJim Rathmann -- winner of the 1960 Indy 500 -- celebrates qualifying for what would be his last 500 in 1963.

Meanwhile, Ward set a record for most times led without winning (10).

They swapped the lead eight times in the last 31 laps alone and it appeared Ward was set to claim the win when he passed Rathmann on the 194th lap, but he pitted two laps later with a worn front tire, handing the win to Rathmann by some 12 seconds.

Rathmann had already earned three second-place finishes at Indianapolis (1952, '57 and '59), and he made three front row starts, briefly holding the one- and four-lap qualifying records in 1956 and 1960.

While Rathmann's win at Indianapolis to kick off the 1960s is what made him famous, he had already won Indy car races at arguably more fearsome tracks. Rathmann was the winner of the 1958 "Race of Two Worlds" (also known as the 500 Miglia di Monza/500 Miles of Monza), an unofficial event staged on a 2.64-mile banked oval at Monza, Italy, that featured Indy cars and modified Formula One and sports cars.

Lap speeds exceeded 176 mph on Monza's high banking, some 30 mph faster than the pole speed at Indianapolis. Rathmann won all three 63-lap heats as the more powerful American cars dominated the proceedings. Rathmann's speed over the total 500 mile was 166.7 mph, a figure that would not be exceeded at the Indianapolis 500 until 1986.

Yet there was an even faster oval track that Rathmann soon also mastered: the brand new Daytona International Speedway, where USAC staged an Indy car doubleheader in April 1959. Rathmann qualified second behind his brother, Dick (the nomenclature of the Rathmann brothers is a story unto itself), then won the first 100-mile heat with an average speed of 170.261 mph. Rathmann won a second 50-mile race with a 160 mph average, but the day was marred by the death of driver George Amick on the last lap of the first race, an event that convinced USAC officials that Indy cars were not suitable for high-banked tracks like Daytona.

Rathmann's only other Indy car race win came at the Milwaukee Mile in 1957, the year he posted his best finish in the USAC championship (second). He was also fourth on two occasions before he retired after the 1963 Indianapolis 500 to devote attention to his burgeoning auto dealerships in Florida. But he maintained close ties to the 500, driving the Pace Car six times.

Ill health prevented Rathmann from attending the centennial edition of the Indianapolis 500 last May. Parnelli Jones, 78, the winner of the 1963 race, is now the oldest living Indy winner.

Ezra Shaw/Getty ImagesHelio Castroneves is his usual happy self at most times, but he's been more unhappy lately.

INDIANAPOLIS -- In the immediate aftermath of the recent IZOD IndyCar Series race in Japan, Helio Castroneves was his usual happy-go-lucky self.

He'd overcome an off-road excursion at the first turn and drove through the field to a seventh-place finish. When I talked to him in the Twin Ring Motegi pit lane for his driver column that appears here on ESPN.com, he was smiling, happy to have salvaged a top-10 finish from a tough day.

Helio wasn't quite as sunny when my colleague Bruce Martin caught up with him on the way to Narita Airport a little while later. Castroneves had just been informed he was dropped to 22nd place in the final order after being judged guilty of passing in a local caution zone.

When Martin asked for a quote, Castroneves exploded with an unflattering portrayal of INDYCAR race director Brian Barnhart. He didn't hold back in a series of Twitter posts, saying: "It is sad to see one person being responsible for bringing down an entire series. Brian Banhart is inconsistent and even changes the rule book when is convenient for him, and his own personal interests. Making the famous @paultracy's words mine: Brian Barnhart is a circus clown! Very disappointed for finishing 7th and being put to 22nd. This is just ABSURD !!! Just expressing my feelings right now!"

INDYCAR announced Tuesday that expressing his feelings cost Castroneves a $30,000 fine. But I wonder if Helio might have handled the situation a bit more calmly if he had been able to express his feelings in the first place.

When we were working on his last ESPN.com column, Castroneves told me he wanted to send a message to INDYCAR about his frustration over Barnhart's on-track management of the series. He said he wanted it to be constructive criticism with a positive message.

Castroneves was delighted with the copy I sent him. "I love it, this is exactly what they need to hear me out!!!" was his e-mailed response.

But the columns go through an approval process with Penske Racing PR, and Helio wasn't pleased with the version that was posted.

"Man, what happened to our story?" was how he greeted me at Motegi.

Penske Racing president Tim Cindric said the decision to soften Castroneves' ESPN column was his call. "You can blame me," he said. "It doesn't do any of us any good to trash INDYCAR."

Castroneves' offense occurred on the last lap of the Japanese race when he passed JR Hildebrand for seventh place. Drivers had been warned about the local yellow by radio.

Castroneves did not dispute making the pass in the restricted zone. His ire stemmed from being dropped to the last finisher on the lead lap rather than just being placed eighth behind Hildebrand.

Frustration about Barnhart's seemingly selective enforcement of a vague rulebook has been simmering within all of the drivers for quite some time and over the last three years Castroneves has been involved in several controversial decisions.

With his future at Team Penske in question for the first time in more than a decade, Castroneves is also under pressure to perform. He and Ryan Briscoe have both been consistently out-performed by Will Power over the last two years and the team may cut back to two cars in 2012.

His long history with the Penske organization and three Indianapolis 500 wins would make Castroneves the strong favorite to remain alongside Power. But many drivers begin to lose their skills in their late 30s, and Helio will turn 37 next May; Briscoe and Power are both 30.

His last win came exactly a year ago on the Twin Ring Motegi oval. This year he's notched a pair of second-place finishes -- both behind Power -- but only three other results of seventh place or better.

Castroneves obviously has a lot on his mind these days. He just needs to find a way to express it without getting edited, penalized or fined.

John Oreovicz/ESPN.comJR Hildebrand said he had no idea a matching-numbers 1966 Chevrolet Chevelle SS was awaiting him at the Panther Racing shop on Wednesday.

INDIANAPOLIS -- Seven weeks later, JR Hildebrand is still dealing with the aftermath of the Indianapolis 500.

But things are looking a lot better.

The 500 was, of course, a good news/bad news situation for the 23-year-old Izod IndyCar Series rookie. Hildebrand finished second in the race, but until the final corner of the final lap, he looked destined to become only the ninth rookie winner of the Memorial Day classic.

Funny thing is that when most people now think about Hildebrand, they don't dwell on the infamous Turn 4 accident that allowed Dan Wheldon to sneak past for his second Indianapolis win. They remember the way Hildebrand handled the moment.

Panther Racing remembers the kid's grace under fire, too. That's why team principal John Barnes presented his driver with a mint 1966 Chevrolet Chevelle SS on Wednesday in an impromptu ceremony at the Panther shop on the west side of Indianapolis.

"We're so blessed to have him here -- he's an incredible young man." Barnes said. "Tony Stewart was talking about the crash, and he said, 'Good things happen to good people.' JR's had an incredible amount of class in handling adversity. He epitomizes what we stand for.

"He's still got a lot to learn as a driver, but we have a lot to learn from him as far as being an adult in terms of adversity and controversy."

Hildebrand admitted that he felt slightly "punked" after being lured to the Panther shop under the guise of a meeting with Barnes and engineer David Cripps to discuss the recent Toronto race, where Hildebrand finished eighth.

But he was clearly stunned by the Chevelle, which he said has long been his dream car. Panther team owner Gary Pedigo, a longtime Indianapolis car dealer, located the numbers-matching car in Colorado.

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John Oreovicz for ESPN.comThe 1966 Chevrolet Chevelle SS given to JR Hildebrand was found in Colorado by team owner and car dealer Gary Pedigo.

"I don't have any idea how this all happened," Hildebrand said. "This is the car I always dreamed of having. I feel like I need to wake up from a dream right now. This is incredible.

"I grew up around muscle cars -- I don't need no Benz, Bentley or Ferrari!" he continued. "My dad had a '68 Camaro Trans Am race car but I like the Chevelles because they fly a little bit under the radar. Muscle cars have always been my thing. It's about being loud and obnoxious and going fast in a straight line."

If the way Hildebrand dealt with the crushing disappointment of crashing on the last lap at Indianapolis provided life lessons to Barnes and the Panther team, obviously it made an impression on JR himself.

"I feel like it's a little bit silly that's gotten so much response," he said. "No matter where we finished the race, that's what I was going to say. That's really how I felt about what was going on and being a part of this National Guard program. We see these guys coming back from Iraq or Afghanistan and there's a lot going on out there that is a bigger deal than what we're doing at the racetrack. I'm glad it ended up being such a positive thing for the team and the Guard.

"I think people are excited to see us try to avenge the battle scar. We had a really good run at Iowa [a fourth-place finish] that was encouraging for us, but I can't wait to get back to Indy next year because that's where I think we're really going to feel it."

People often decry the lack of American stars in Indy car racing, but Panther has long tried to reverse that perception. The team plucked Sam Hornish Jr. from obscurity and turned him into a multiple-time IndyCar Series champion who went on to drive for Roger Penske. Young, intelligent and articulate -- not to mention fast -- Hildebrand is in a peer group that includes Marco Andretti and Graham Rahal as the next generation of American open-wheel stars.

Panther hasn't won a race since 2005, but Hildebrand believes the team still has the capability to beat the likes of Penske and Ganassi.

And a shiny red '66 Chevelle is proof that Barnes and Panther believe in Hildebrand.

"There's a lot of stuff that goes on in racing," Hildebrand said. "You get put in tough situations a lot of the time and stuff like this really shows what kind of a guy John Barnes is, just that he thought to do something like this.

"He's obviously just an awesome guy to work for."

INDIANAPOLIS -- California Speedway. Really?

That was my first reaction upon learning the Izod IndyCar Series will return to Fontana, Calif., in 2012 for a 400-mile night race.

Actually, it's officially called Auto Club Speedway these days. But it's the same 2-mile oval about an hour east of Los Angeles that staged Indy car races under CART and Indy Racing League sanction for a steadily decreasing audience from 1997 to 2005.

I was there for most of them and witnessed the place packed to capacity for the debut CART race in 1997, when PacWest Racing's Mauricio Gugelmin set a closed-course qualifying record of 240.942 mph and went even faster -- 242.333 mph, to be precise -- in practice. His teammate Mark Blundell won the race.

I was there three years later when Gil de Ferran upped the one-lap record to 241.426 mph and again in 2003 when Sam Hornish Jr. averaged 207.151 mph over 400 miles to win the flat-out fastest race in the history of Indy car racing.

But I was also there on Halloween 1999 when Greg Moore lost his life in a Turn 2 accident. And again in 2001, 45 days after the 9/11 attacks, when the track's over-the-top security measures made California Speedway a very unpleasant place to go to work.

So despite a relatively brief nine-year run, Fontana has plenty of Indy car history -- good and bad. What it hasn't had since the first couple of races is an audience. But a pair of optimists -- INDYCAR CEO Randy Bernard and Auto Club Speedway president Gillian Zucker -- believe there is an audience that can be brought back.

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Gavin Lawrence/Getty ImagesTight racing and unheard of speeds were hallmarks of Auto Club Speedway the last time Indy car racing was there.

And without the benefit of tens of thousands of corporate tickets bought and distributed by sponsors such as Philip Morris back in the days when the CART race was known as the Marlboro 500.

"As most people know, this racetrack was built by the Penskes, built with open-wheel racing in mind," Zucker said in a conference call with media. "In our minds, this is the most competitive place to see open-wheel racing in the country. We hold the world speed record for the fastest lap of 241 miles an hour. We know that the finishes here have been unlike any other.

"We feel like this is going to provide a really excellent opportunity to provide world-class racing for our fans and diversify our schedule."

Zucker said she thinks several factors will play into making IndyCar's return to Fontana a success. She cited the unification of open-wheel racing and believes the night race format will be a hit. The early announcement of the IndyCar event means it will be included in Auto Club Speedway's 2012 season-ticket package.

Zucker also revealed sensible ticket prices, including a $30 general admission option that includes grandstand seating. Reserved seats are $50 to $60.

"There isn't a day that goes by that we don't have fans asking for the return of open-wheel racing," Zucker said. "When the split happened with open-wheel racing, there were fans that were disappointed about what was going on in the industry. Some of them showed that disappointment by not attending events. Now that the series is so cohesive, has so much momentum behind it, with all the changes that Randy made in the past year, the excitement he's bringing to the sport, I think the timing is just absolutely right.

"We're prepared to aggressively promote it with more than a year to be able to do that."

Those words are music to Bernard's ears. Auto Club Speedway is the first track owned by International Speedway Corp. -- controlled by NASCAR's France family -- to return to the IndyCar Series schedule after spending a year on the sidelines due to the widespread belief (shared by Bernard) that ISC didn't promote its Indy car races as effectively or aggressively as it could.

Bernard said he has been in contact with several other ISC tracks and didn't rule out another "one to three" making the cut for what he hopes is an expanded 20-race 2012 schedule.

One of IndyCar's challenges is to develop a full slate of oval races to maintain a 50/50 balance with road and street courses. The series might not return to the Milwaukee Mile, which was very poorly attended for its comeback Indy car race after a year's absence.

"I have been talking to other presidents of tracks that want to be very aggressive and are laying out plans on how they can promote our series," Bernard said. "That's what's important to me.

"Last year because of timing and because of availability at tracks, the moving of some NASCAR races, it didn't work that there were any ISC tracks on our schedule. But we've continued to communicate all the time. It's just a matter of time before you see one or two or three ISC tracks on our schedule, like [Auto Club Speedway]."

Auto Club Speedway was designed as an improved Michigan International Speedway, and it's 2-mile format is ideal for Indy cars. From a competition standpoint, returning to Fontana definitely has merit.

Whether it's a smart commercial proposition remains to be seen.

NEWTON, Iowa -- Lost in the excitement of Marco Andretti's thrilling victory Saturday night in the Iowa Corn Indy 250 was the intrigue of the IndyCar Series championship battle between Dario Franchitti and Will Power.

Those same protagonists who took the 2010 IndyCar championship chase down to the wire arrived in Iowa deadlocked with 271 points.

And while Franchitti could rightfully be disappointed by finishing fifth after leading 172 of the 250 laps, his night was still better than Power's.

The Team Penske driver was delayed by a pit-lane incident, and he later crashed heavily in Turn 2, sustaining a minor concussion.

The upshot is that Franchitti heads into the midseason break prior to the July 10 Honda Indy Toronto with a 20-point championship lead. Meanwhile, Power must nurse an aching head.

"To get the points lead is good, but I didn't want to get it by Will crashing," Franchitti said. "I was happy to see Will get out of the car, because like myself, he's had some issues with his back and it looked like a fairly sore hit.

"We'll continue our battle in Toronto together."

The Australian's troubles started when he was waved out of his first pit stop into the path of rookie Charlie Kimball. Power stayed on the lead lap despite a series of pit stops to repair the damage from the pit-lane collision, but ran near the back before crashing on Lap 90.

The heavy impact appeared to daze Power but he walked to the ambulance and gave an interview to Versus pit reporter Kevin Lee after he was released from the infield care center.

"Rung my bell a bit then -- that hurt," Power said. "Probably shouldn't have been out there with a damaged car, I think.

"S---, man, that's not good."

Power again deviated from the Penske playbook when he pointed the finger at his No. 12 crew.

"They just sent me out and [Kimball] came across my bow," Power said. "That was that. It bent the steering and broke the front wing. I guess that's what caused the accident. I had to put so much lock in to turn the car, then it caught me out.

"Once again we screwed ourselves in the pits like we always do. We've just got to stop that."

Franchitti also had trouble in the pits, but it wasn't nearly as costly. He lost the lead to Andretti on a Lap 184 pit stop when crewman Steve Namisnak encountered trouble at the left front corner of the car.

The Scotsman led 172 of the first 184 laps in his Suave-liveried car but he said his car wasn't comfortable anywhere but out front.

"We had a problem in the last pit stop and Marco got ahead," Franchitti said. "Then TK [Tony Kanaan] had a better restart and got around me.

"All night it had been getting more oversteery," he added. "They asked if I wanted a change at the last stop and I said 'No, just leave it' because I thought I could hang on. But once I got in traffic, I couldn't and I was really struggling at the end."

Dario nearly crashed while running third behind Andretti and Kanaan and he lost an additional position to JR Hildebrand to finish fifth.

"We led a lot of laps tonight but as a team we didn't get the job done," Franchitti said. "Marco did a hell of a job and deserved that, and Scott Dixon coming from last to third was really impressive.

"We didn't do the job, but we still finished fifth after we tried to knock down the Turn 4 wall a couple of times. Not where we wanted to finish but it was a hell of a race tonight. One of those things. Not a bad points night."

Franchitti won the season opening Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg and since then, he and Power have swapped the championship lead four times.

Power built a 21-point lead after he won the second race of the Texas Motor Speedway doubleheader. But Franchitti bounced back to tie his rival at the top after winning at Milwaukee, and there has been a 41-point swing in his favor in the last two races.

"Points, points, points & everybody is getting excited about points," Franchitti said in a post-race interview at Iowa with Versus. "Each point is important, but I'm not thinking about points.

"I'm trying to take it one race at a time."