|| *Comments on the 2012 Indianapolis 500:* View the most recent comment <#138> | Post a comment <#post> Tweet 1. Spen posted: 05.20.2012 - 12:34 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) Darn it James, just three one-thousands of a second, and you could have won me the pole bonus. 2. joey2448 posted: 05.20.2012 - 2:47 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Boy, I can not wait for next Sunday! Just a part of the greatest racing weekend of the year! 3. Baker posted: 05.20.2012 - 6:43 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) I haven't watched a full season of open wheel in almost 10 years now so I have no favorites to cheer for this year. I guess anyone but Dario. 4. TeamPlayersBlue posted: 05.20.2012 - 7:04 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) go hich! 5. TeamPlayersBlue posted: 05.20.2012 - 7:05 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Epic Fail, Hinch... 6. Rob posted: 05.20.2012 - 9:41 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Its going to be a Penske and Andretti show next sunday. I also cant believe Simona De Silvestros team hasnt switched from a Lotus engine to a Honda or Chevy. 7. RaceFanX posted: 05.20.2012 - 9:46 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) With only 33 entries due the car changeover Bump Day lost quite a bit of it's normal drama. There were concerns the field would be short but a few last minute entries, such as former Formula 1 driver Jean Alesi's Lotus, assured there would be the traditional field of 33. 8. joey2448 posted: 05.20.2012 - 11:14 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) How come Dario is running #50 instead of 10? 9. RaceFanX posted: 05.20.2012 - 11:27 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Dario used the #50 for this one race as a tribute to the 50th Anniversary of his sponsor Target. 10. NicoRosbergFan posted: 05.21.2012 - 5:03 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Hinch, win one for Danny Boy! 11. Draco (Candraco) posted: 05.22.2012 - 1:50 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Wouldnt it be cool if Barrichelo wins this sunday? 12. bpisports.com posted: 05.22.2012 - 5:59 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I'm rooting for all of the F1 guys (Barrichello, Sato, Alesi...no Bourdais) and Dario...if one of them wins, I'm good...can't wait! 13. Destroyahirismix666 posted: 05.23.2012 - 8:00 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Man, I really want to see Kannan get it this year. If not him, then Sebastian Bourdais. I was a fan of his in his F1 days. 14. Anthony posted: 05.26.2012 - 2:37 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) What a moment it would be if HInchcliffe wins the race 15. Rob posted: 05.27.2012 - 7:42 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) I hope Hinch wins. Hes my second favorite driver next to Will Power. The kid is a real class act. And hes turing into one heck of a driver too. 16. Destroyahirismix666 posted: 05.27.2012 - 9:00 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Okay folks! This is the day of the greatest spectacle in Motorsports. I'm predicting an exciting, and (sadly) crashed filled race. Let's pray for the drivers' and fans safety, and then, LETS SEE SOMEONE WIN ANOTHER BORG-WARNER TROPHY! 17. Destroyahirismix666 posted: 05.27.2012 - 12:09 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I keep forgetting how moving the intro of the race is. 18. Destroyahirismix666 posted: 05.27.2012 - 3:00 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) 30 LEAD CHANGES! F*** YEAH! Let's keep it going! Despite how funky it looks, I'm LOVING this new car! 19. Destroyahirismix666 posted: 05.27.2012 - 3:00 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) YES KANNAN HAS THE LEAD! 20. Destroyahirismix666 posted: 05.27.2012 - 3:08 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) Marco Continues the Andretti Curse. Kannan is in the lead. This will be one of the most AMAZING final 9 laps ever in Indy 500 history! For Wheldon's sake, God, gods, and/or fate, please let Kannan win it! 21. Draco (Candraco) posted: 05.27.2012 - 3:10 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Kanaan has the lead with 8 to go! Hopefully he can FINALLY pull it off. 22. Schroeder51 posted: 05.27.2012 - 3:18 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Dammit, I wanted Sato to win. He tried to pass Franchitti too early though, and screwed himself... 23. NicoRosbergFan posted: 05.27.2012 - 3:20 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I think this race has proven what unsportsmanlike a-holes Ganassi has. I have a feeling there was more subtle intent to IndyCars ruling on turbogate now... Thoughts comrades? 24. 10andJoe posted: 05.27.2012 - 3:21 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) ^ I think your tinfoil hat needs adjusting. Awesome race. Shame Sato proved true to form... 25. BanRedCars posted: 05.27.2012 - 3:23 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Dirty Dario steals another one with his chop blocking style. 26. 1995 Subaru WRX STi posted: 05.27.2012 - 3:25 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I have an sneaking suspesion Dario will win more then 4 Indy 500s in his carrer. 27. beau posted: 05.27.2012 - 3:25 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) great race, but i hoped someone else would win. congrats to dario anyway, 3 indy wins is fantastic. 28. Kyle posted: 05.27.2012 - 3:25 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) except for the finish it was a pretty good race, with the most lead changes in 500 history. dario pulled the same move he pulled on newgarden at long beach. he's a dirty driver whose 500 "wins" have come in a rain delay or under caution, none of which i would consider a real win. 29. Destroyahirismix666 posted: 05.27.2012 - 3:27 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Dang. I wanted SO badly for Kannan to win. But it wasn't to be. Still, good job for Dario. Stupid move on Sato's part. It reminded me of the 1989 finish. Even Dario's onboard showed that he didn't win it 'dirty'. Maybe next year Tony. Maybe next year. 30. NicoRosbergFan posted: 05.27.2012 - 3:30 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Dario continues to prove he is a dirty driver and a threat to these people's lives, yet other drivers get penalties for genuine accidents and other small offenses. Perhaps my tin hat needs adjusting, but I have seen nothing but someone who is a abhorrance to humanity on the racetrack, but a sweet guy of the track. There is competitive, and then there is COMPETITIVE, where you will do anything, even threaten peoples lives, to get your wish (see Kyle Busch). 31. Bill the Snake Charmer posted: 05.27.2012 - 3:40 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Sato was the guy I was pulling for hard but he was too aggressive at the end. I knew he would crash out. Great race. I do not think those stock cars can top this race or Monaco ;). 32. NadeauFan91 posted: 05.27.2012 - 3:43 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I'm happy to see that peoples thoughts on the finish are just as polarizing as they are on another forum I go on. Personally, it was a racing deal to me. Sato made a banzai move into turn one, and Dario pinched down in the turn. Good race overall. 33. 10andJoe posted: 05.27.2012 - 3:48 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) NRF, if you think Dario drove "dirty" against Sato, I'd like to know what race you were watching. Sato dove too deep, went below the white line, and paid the price just like Carpenter and Andretti did. Or was there a phantom Target car forcing them down too? Sato has a history of this: lightning fast but drives over his talent level when it comes to the crunch. As I said before, he proved true to form - the banzai move too soon, and he wrecked. The only thing Dario had to do was it was managing to avoid becoming collateral damage. 34. Cooper posted: 05.27.2012 - 3:49 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Best Indianapolis 500 I've ever watched. Takuma Sato is definitely the driver of the race. Dude is a wheelman. I thought it was a great move, just not at the right time. These new cars seem to put on a good show. I might watch this series a little closer this year. Very entertaining. Ashley Judd is so annoying. 35. Schroeder51 posted: 05.27.2012 - 3:51 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) As much as I dislike Dario, that was a racing accident. Sato tried passing Dario far too early. If he had waited another corner or so he probably would have been able to win the race. Can't begin to imagine what it would feel like to crash out of the biggest race of the year on the last lap while battling for the win. 36. NicoRosbergFan posted: 05.27.2012 - 3:56 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) But sportsmanship demands that Dario at least give Sato room, plus Sato had been doing that all day, so it seems odd he would wreck then. I am also getting sick of spellcheck on a RACING SITE telling me I am spelling RACE CAR DRIVER'S names wrong. 37. 10andJoe posted: 05.27.2012 - 4:13 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) As far as I could tell, Dario held his line. If Sato thinks he can make that move anyway, he's braver ("for varying definitions of 'brave'") then we thought... 38. cjs3872 posted: 05.27.2012 - 4:21 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) The fact is that Takuma Sato made an idiotic move that was never going to work. what any driver that has been in heavy drafting races like this one would do is wait until they goit on the backstrech, and then draft by Franchtti there. If he had done that instead, he would have been 10 car lengths ahead and would have coasted home to victory. As you said Schroeder51, Sato made his move too early. Actually, I'm a bit surprised that Dario didn't lift at about the start-finish line to force Sato to pass him and get a run on him down the backstretch, much like David Pearson did to Richard Petty in the 1974 Firecracker 400. But the move Sato tried was never going to work. What Franchitti did when he saw what Sato was going to try to do, was to give Sato enough room to get inside, knowing that running over the white line would cause him to lose control, and he knew it. He basically gave Sato enough rope to hang himself with, and not an inch more. 39. 10andJoe posted: 05.27.2012 - 4:29 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Interesting fact: Alesi received a two-lap penalty for ignoring the black flag. 40. Anonymous posted: 05.27.2012 - 4:29 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) Great race. On the last lap there is no "sportsmanship". Sato screwed up (again) and Dario made a great save. I agree Dario can be the first to win 5 Indy 500's. 41. Daniel posted: 05.27.2012 - 4:48 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Very disappointed that the one driver in the field of 33 I didn't want to win, won. It's not even that I don't like Dario, Ashley Judd is the most annoying person I've ever seen. Was very impressed with not only the runs by Sato and Wilson, but the run by Carpenter. I did not expect him to run as well as he did at all, shame he wrecked. 42. JG24FanForever posted: 05.27.2012 - 5:01 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) wow what a race 43. Bronco posted: 05.27.2012 - 5:21 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "Can't begin to imagine what it would feel like to crash out of the biggest race of the year on the last lap while battling for the win." Probably feels a lot better than crashing out of the lead on the last turn of the last lap like JR Hildebrand did last year. I think this is the first time since 2008 that a Panther Racing car didn't finish 2nd. Even though he crashed out, I applaud Takuma Sato for driving up to Dario and at least trying to pass him at the end. Much better finish than the anticlimatic finish to the Daytona 500 this year. Dario has now won the last three championships and two of the last three Indy 500s since his botched attempt at NASCAR. The GoDaddy car didn't get a lot of attention thankfully, even though James is doing a better job with it than its previous driver. Before the race began wished like hell that Will Power or Tony Kanaan or some underdog would win, but it wasn't to be. Really hoping that Will Power can finally close the deal and win the championship this year. 44. cjs3872 posted: 05.27.2012 - 5:29 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) No Bronco, I don't think what happened to Sato compares to what happened to J.R. Hildebrand last year, because what happened to Hildebrand last year was completely unavoidable. He made the only move he could make, though it resulted in a crash. What happened to Sato was his own doing. He tried a dumb move that was doomed to fail from the moment he tried it, while Hildebrand last year had to take evasive action because the car he came up on had run out of fuel and was going 53 MPH slower than he was in the racing groove. There was just no way around that situation for Hildebrand. But in this year's race, all Sato had to do was wait until they got on the backstretch, and he would have almost certainly passed Franchitti. 45. Anonymous posted: 05.27.2012 - 5:32 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) cjs3872, a well known keyboard indycar racer 46. 10andJoe posted: 05.27.2012 - 5:32 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Query for the Webmaster: is there any way Simona's flag icon can be fixed so it isn't stretched? 47. Bronco posted: 05.27.2012 - 5:45 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "But in this year's race, all Sato had to do was wait until they got on the backstretch, and he would have almost certainly passed Franchitti." Okay, but then Franchitti could have stalked him until the frontstretch where he would have passed Takuma just like in the 2006 Indy 500. The point is we'll never know what would have really happened, so it's foolish to say Takuma made the wrong move too soon, just like its foolish to predict having Aric Almirola starting on the pole for the 600 is going to lead to an early wreck as drivers try and pass him. Racing isn't about playing nice and just waiting, you have to take your chances when you have them in front of you, risky or not. If he had made the pass stick and had won, we'd be calling him a hero for that move. I like that Takuma made his move early, rather than wait until the last second and have a caution come out which would have handed the win to Dario anyway. I absolutely hate when a caution on the last lap ruins a potentially epic finish at RP races ('05-'06 UAW Ford 500, '06 Daytona 500 and Pepsi 400, '08 Aaron's 499 and Coke Zero 400, '09-'10 AMP Energy 500 are some prime examples of that). The green flag is about to wave on the 600 in less than an hour and I cannot wait to see what kind of massive wreck we can expect with Almirola starting up front, and I also can't wait to see him drop like a rock like you mentioned. 48. 1995 Subaru WRX STi posted: 05.27.2012 - 5:55 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) "If you no longer go for a gap, you're no longer a racing driver" Ayrton Senna said this, would anyone like disagree with him? (i know of 2 people on here that mostly will because of personal bias) 49. cjs3872 posted: 05.27.2012 - 6:00 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) No Bronco. Had Sato waited until the backstretch to make his move, he would have been too far in front for Franchitti to make a move. Because Franchitti would have had to lift because of turbulence, Sato would have had at least a 10 car-length lead, which would have allowed him to easily get to the finish. Now if Dixon had folowed Sato through on such a move, then Dixon might have had a shot at Sato on the run to the checkers, but had it been between just Franchitti and Sato, Franchitti would have been too far behind to make a countermove on Sato. And again, I hope nothing happens on the start or the first few laps of the 600, but the likelyhood of Almirola dropping back, particularly with Jimmie Johnson starting right behind him, is fairly high. What I see happening is that Johnson will try to move on Almirola immediately if Almirola chooses to start on the inside. And I don't think anything will happen. It's just that the likelyhood of something happening early, which is very low, does go up when there's an unproven driver starting up front in such a big race. 50. Schroeder51 posted: 05.27.2012 - 6:04 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Fact: The Coke 600 will almost certainly NOT be as fun or as exciting as this race was. 51. cjs3872 posted: 05.27.2012 - 6:05 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) 1995 Subaru WRX STi, it's like I said. Franchitti knew that Sato, an inexperienced driver that had never been in position to win a race, much less the Indianapolis 500, might take such a risk, so he left Sato just enough rope to hang himself, which he promptly did. There's a reason why Franchitti's now won this race three of the last five times he's run in it. And it's probably no surprise that Franchitti won this race. With the heavy drafting that took place in the event, you would figure that a driver with a great deal of experience drafting would have a big advantage, and Franchitti was, to my knowledge, the only driver in the field in the Indianapolis 500 this year that had experience at the highest level of NASCAR, which included a start in the 2008 Daytona 500, and he used that experience to his advantage, even when he was stuck back in the field after his pit road misadventure. 52. playboi posted: 05.27.2012 - 6:17 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Remind me to smack ashley judd if i ever pass her on the street 53. Anonymous posted: 05.27.2012 - 6:58 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Sponsors #50 Target 50th Anniversary #9 Target #11 Gieco / Moser #2 IZOD #27 GoDaddy #18 Sonny's Real Pit B-B-Q #83 NovoLogicFlexPen #99 Braun Ability #3 Shell / Pennzoil #8 BMC / Embrase #98 Barracuda #38 Service Central #4 U.S. National Guard #19 Boy Scouts of America #77 Hewlett-Packard #15 Mi-Jack / With You Japan #5 Citgo / PVDSA #30 Office Depot #7 McAfee Anti-Virus #20 Fuzzy's Vodka #6 True Car #25 Irpianga #26 RC Cola / Marsh #67 Dollar General #17 AFS #28 Sun-Drop / Circle K #12 Verizon Wireless #14 ABC Building Supply #39 Angie's List #41 ABC Building Supply #78 Nuclear Clean Energy / Lotus #64 fpjourne.com 54. DaleSrFanForever posted: 05.27.2012 - 7:04 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I also wanted Kanaan to win. But congrats to racing legend Dario Franchitti. He gave Sato a lot more room than I initially thought. But I also don't blame Sato. You couldn't lift in this race without neeing laps to make up for it. He had to take his shot imo. 55. Sean posted: 05.27.2012 - 7:23 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I still think Dario is more lucky than good. Oh, don't get me wrong. I'd put him 20th-25th as an all-time driver, but 4 titles and 3 Indy 500 wins makes him look better than Mario Andretti when he is not. even. close. First off, I'm not sure how NASCAR drafting experience (especially as little as he had) would help here. Totally different kinds of cars and the drafting was side-by-side pack action much more than Indy was. I think if Dario had an advantage with the drafting (as he probably did), he gained that experience through the awesome CART Hanford device races at Michigan and California from 1998-2001. This was like a more subdued Hanford device race with constant single-file passing, except in those CART races, there were multiple passes a lap, while this time it was more like one pass every two laps. However, in both the CART Hanford device races and this one, almost nobody was ever able to break the draft (Max Papis was really the only one I remember in the Hanford races and Marco was the only one to do so here). I don't think his plate experience helped him here at all, but the CART Hanford device races helped him, Dixon, Kanaan, and Servia, all of whom had driven in several of those races... Surprised Castroneves didn't do better since he was in those races too. Yeah, the drivers who emerged in Champ Car (after CART) had minimal drafting experience especially since they arrived in IndyCar with the merger when most of the cookie-cutter races at Texas/Chicagoland/Kentucky/Homestead/Kansas were much more tepid affairs than in the early IRL around 2000-2002, so it makes sense that people like Briscoe, Power, Bourdais, and Hunter-Reay were kind of lost since they didn't compete in either the Hanford device races or Indy Lights races (which tended to have more drafting) or the IRL pack races very often (although this much more closely resembled the CART Hanford device races to me, which means the top four should be no surprise at all...) So as for Sato, he arrived in IndyCar in 2010, had little drafting experience, and I'm not surprised he screwed that up (I can't STAND Dario but I don't blame him for the Sato wreck or the Newgarden wreck at Long Beach. I just think both of them were driving over their heads, although Newgarden's move was so awesome and so reminiscent of Jerry Nadeau's on lap 1-turn 1 at Sears Point as a rookie in '98...) 56. Sean posted: 05.27.2012 - 7:25 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) But let's quickly review Dario's titles and Indy 500 wins for a second. 2007 Indy 500 - Kanaan is overwhelmingly dominant and pits just before a caution for rain ends the race. Kanaan kind of got hosed. 2010 Indy 500 - No argument against this one. Dario did dominate. 2012 Indy 500 - If almost anyone else had been chasing Dario, he would have lost. Dixon, Castroneves, Briscoe, Wilson, Kanaan, Servia, Hunter-Reay, Power, Hinchcliffe, Rahal, whoever... Even as inexperienced as some of those guys were at drafting, I think ANY of them would have made the pass correctly. Servia from 27th to 4th had OVERWHELMINGLY the most impressive performance to me but didn't even get an interview and wasn't really mentioned at all despite coming from getting a wave-around VERY late in the race to finish 4th. I don't think the backstretch would have been the best place to try for a pass though. Most of the best passes were made coming to the line, and that's where I think Sato should have done it, although he might not have had the time, since I know a lot of passes were made shortly after the start-finish line. Having said that, I ALSO think Marco would have screwed up and I can't believe so many people were picking him to win before the race. If his father Michael never won, Marco will NEVER win and although I thought he was a petulant douche before, he REALLY topped himself today. Dario's titles are more outrageous: 2007 - Dario does dominate the first half of the season, then had scary airborne wrecks (both self-inflicted) at Michigan and Kentucky. The Kentucky wreck happened on the cool-down lap and was like a rookie mistake. At the next race at Sears Point, Dario runs into Marco whom he was about to lap damaging his wing. Kanaan by team orders decides to sit behind Dario and block anyone else from passing him. Dario finished 3rd and barely lost the points lead to Dixon, when he should have been 15th or something without the team orders. Dixon gets his revenge on the streets of Detroit by intentionally taking out Dario, who was directly behind him, but Dario got his car fired first and took the points lead. Then Dario and Dixon battled for the win and championship at Chicagoland, which Dario won by fuel mileage. 2009 - Points leader Ryan Briscoe, about to inherit the lead thanks to being in the pits for the final time at Motegi JUST as a caution comes out, has the worst choke of the last ten years (yes, worse than Montoya, Ragan, Hildebrand, or Sato). He crashes while leaving the pits under caution and instead of nearly clinching the championship only needing to start at Homestead, he drops to third in points behind Franchitti and Dixon. Franchitti and Dixon then try different pit strategies at Homestead, and Franchitti beats Dixon for the SECOND time solely due to pit strategy/fuel mileage. 2010 - Will Power built up a massive lead in the second half of the season but his pit crew screwed him over twice and caused him to barely have the points lead entering the final race. Not gonna argue against this one. Dario won the pole and controlled the race while Power qualified poorly. Dario WILLED himself to this one Tony Stewart-style and earned it in a way he did not in 2007 and 2009 when to me he got OBSCENELY lucky. 2011 - This is where I finally got UNBELIEVABLY sick of Dario. While I'll admit that Dario was and is superior to Power on ovals (VERY odd since back in CART, Dario was lackluster on ovals and was a road/street specialist like Power is now), there's still NO way Power should have lost this. Power got wrecked in the pits in two separate oval races. He got punted by Castroneves at Long Beach. He got punted by Dario HIMSELF at Toronto, which ultimately decided the title. Dario wasn't penalized for punting Power at Toronto and eventually winning the race ("I always race him clean, and he always races me dirty"), nor was Tagliani, who fully wrecked him out of the race later ("He's always been a bit of a wanker") - Power is GREAT with regard to quotes. Dario wasn't penalized for causing a multi-car wreck (including wrecking his teammate Graham Rahal) at Motegi. There were several other situations where the officials swallowed their whistle with regard to Dario while being much harsher on Power. And Dario had started whining ANY TIME anything went the other way. While I myself thought the idea of a random draw to start the second Texas race was stupid, Dario waited until he drew the 25th starting position to Will's 3rd before whining, and he whined on plenty of other occasions as well. Well, at least they didn't give Power a points penalty for his iconic double bird... Is Dario a great driver? Absolutely. But is he as great as his stats make him look? No way. I used to like him A LOT up until the point of his NASCAR failure, but he's become almost as annoying as Castroneves and Marco (and they're the ONLY three drivers in that entire field I don't like, as opposed to NASCAR where so many are hateworthy...) Another reason Dario makes me sick lately is the WAY he returned to IndyCar. In retrospect, I don't think he ever ACTUALLY had interest in NASCAR. He had interest in signing with Ganassi to position himself for a Ganassi IndyCar ride. Michael Andretti was clearly focusing on his son and Danica way more than the actual talented drivers that were there (Franchitti and Kanaan), which is one of the key reasons Franchitti left, while Kanaan was appallingly forced to play second-fiddle there to Danica and Marco for the next several years. Also, after his airborne wrecks in 2007, Ashley Judd wanted him in the safer NASCAR. But I think his only interest was signing with Ganassi to position himself for an IndyCar ride later. He ended up replacing Dan Wheldon at Ganassi because IndyCar was rapidly switching from all-oval to majority road/street course, and although Wheldon was UNQUESTIONABLY the better oval driver, Franchitti is far better on road and street courses. Ganassi fired Wheldon over nothing simply because he wasn't QUITE good enough on road/street courses (he had been 4th in points back-to-back years), refused Wheldon's many requests to go to NASCAR while sending inferior oval driver Franchitti there, thereby forcing Wheldon to drive shit and eventually be unemployed, win Indy as an unemployed driver, and then die in a stupid promotional gimmick. Do I hold Franchitti responsible for Wheldon's death? Of course not, but I think replacing Wheldon worked a bit too conveniently for Franchitti and it's really hard for me to watch him in victory lane go on about how sad he is when he replaced him, indirectly forced Wheldon to drive garbage, and certainly helped push Wheldon into the situation that led to Las Vegas. I'm not doubting he IS sad and justifiably so, but I have to admit I'm pissed that even though he IS better on the entire schedule, Wheldon got fired for him despite not really underperforming in my view. If Ganassi had never fired Wheldon, he would still be with us... I realize I'm being quite harsh. I know Franchitti's a great driver. I know he CAN be likable, but what a buzzkill. He's not THAT legendary, and his luck is certainly greater than his skill. And it really kills me knowing that any of 15 (20?) other drivers would have been able to make that pass and prevent the continual Penske/Ganassi juggernaut but he had to be competing with a dumbass... I would have MUCH preferred a Kanaan win because of the times he should have won before and especially that HE did not personally capitalize from Wheldon's career downfall. He was offered the exact same Ganassi ride first and turned it down, perhaps not wanting to take Wheldon's ride that way... Kanaan is showing much more class by overachieving for a second-tier team in my opinion... 57. Anonymous posted: 05.27.2012 - 8:25 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "Also, after his airborne wrecks in 2007, Ashley Judd wanted him in the safer NASCAR" And he promptly brakes his foot after 10 races (not his fault) 58. RaceFanX posted: 05.27.2012 - 8:32 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Mike Conway damaged his front wing hitting members of his crew during a pit stop. That mistake became an even bigger one when the wing damage made up lose it just afterward in Turn 1 leading to a wild airborne wreck that also elimated Will Power. The crash ended Power's three-race winning streak. Conway was in the process of being penalized for the pit road incident when the wreck occurred, it's his second bad airborne wreck at Indy in the last three years after his season-ending incident at the end of the race in 2010. 59. martin-n-rusty posted: 05.27.2012 - 9:01 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) That was last lap racing. Dario made a blocking move that wasn't as aggressive as some would like to think, and Sato HAD to make his move, otherwise, I don't think he could have pulled off something had he let up to "make his move in 3 and 4". As for Mike Conway, the moment I saw that crash start, I thought we were going to have a dead driver. Had he hit that fence a little harder (and have the wall come down and pretty much behead him), or gotten up into the catch fencing, I'm sure that would have been a possibility. Thank god he was ok 60. martin-n-rusty posted: 05.27.2012 - 9:04 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) And Sean, consider that Dario had spend time in the IRL when it still had a ton of ovals, while Power has pretty much gone into an IRL that has moved towards road courses. Dario has had a lot more oval track time to build up his skills for those types of tracks, while Power hasn't had that opportunity. I will agree that Marco needs some growing up. I can understand being frustrated, but the last time we heard someone pout like that over a radio, he eventually got canned from his ride (looks in Kurt Busch's direction). Sadly, he drives for daddy, so I'm sure nothing would be done to him. 61. Joshua Osborne posted: 05.27.2012 - 10:05 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Mike Conway had a wild ride in Turn 1 after knocking down 2 of his own crew memebers...He almost went into the catch fence again! But thank god he and Will Power walked away from the crash! 62. Neal posted: 05.27.2012 - 10:29 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) If the DW12 chassis keeps putting on races like this one, IndyCar will position itself to eat into NASCAR's ratings because NASCAR's product is terrible right now. 63. Critic posted: 05.27.2012 - 10:44 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) I think that anyone asserting that Sato should have waited until later in the lap to make his move is underestimating the role of momentum in the modern IRL, and may not watch as much single seater racing as their authoritative tone would indicate. The broadcast may not have highlighted it, but immediately after the final restart, Sato was forced to lift off -- Briscoe swept in front of him heading into turn four after Briscoe was overtaken by another car -- and Sato ended up losing more than one position as a consequence, which is why he didn't re-establish contact with Franchitti and Dixon until four to go. If Sato had not taken advantage of the opportunity he perceived going into turn one, there is no reason to believe that he would've had another before the end of the lap, just like Mears' effort in 1982 under similar circumstances came up short when he showed Gordon Johncock an incredible amount of charity, and we would be castigating Sato for not making an attempt and deferring to Franchitti. Before you accuse me of engaging in the same form of speculation I am criticizing, I think that my view is substantiated by what took place on the preceding lap: the reason why Sato's move had such a desperate (if defensible) character about it was because he was not in position to slipstream alongside Franchitti until they were past the start-finish line. The reason for that is because of the extremely sharp line Sato was forced to take into turn one while following Franchitti through on Dixon on lap 199; it took him the entirely of that lap and more simply to eliminate the distance between he and Franchitti. Sato's experience throughout the afternoon undoubtedly informed his judgment; he had too much of a speed advantage not to try something heading into turn one. In my opinion, if he wanted to win the race, that was his chance, and I don't believe that going to the outside of Franchitti would've been feasible, although Franchitti was so far off the optimum line heading into the corner it's a thought. For all of the fawning over Franchitti 'giving [Sato] enough rope to hang himself', only luck prevented Franchitti from being involved in the incident, so let's not credit him with clairvoyance in addition to his natural talent. If you watch the replay, Sato is alongside Franchitti before the entry to the corner, at which point Franchitti no longer has the right to the inside line; while a very late move, it was not abrupt or unexpected. Only after Sato is equal with Franchitti, forced below the white line because of the trajectory Franchitti took into the corner (and we can ascertain this by the gradient of the track), does Franchitti begin gliding upward. It was not a block in the conventional sense, because that would imply Franchitti didn't allow Sato underneath him before the turn, but Sato was under no obligation to go below the white line once he had the corner. Only that, rather than Franchitti's purported brilliance, averted an accident for both of them. The maneuver may have won Franchitti the race, but I'm not convinced he would have employed it on a competitor he had more respect for. Sato was not erratic or impulsive; to suggest he committed some great offense while only Franchitti's sagacity prevented further disaster is nonsense. American single seater racing is too diluted in comparison to its past for Franchitti to be considered legendary. Additionally, while I have no particular antipathy for him, Ganassi's IRL and Grand-Am teams act with incredible conceit -- 'above' their competition, if you comprehend my meaning -- and that has led his drivers to believe in their own self-righteousness. They have an unfortunate tendency to admonish everyone else while suggesting they have an exclusive claim on moral virtue. If some of us found today's finish grating, that attitude may have something to do with it, because Sato's conduct was not the only element that led to his demise. 64. 10andJoe posted: 05.27.2012 - 10:44 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) #2 sponsor: IZOD #3 sponsor: Shell V-Power/Pennzoil #4 sponsor: National Guard #5 sponsor: Citgo/PVDSA #6 sponsor: TrueCar #7 sponsor: McAfee/Bing #8 sponsor: BMC/Embrase/Hyundai Heavy Industries #9 sponsor: Target #11 sponsor: Geico/Mouser.com #12 sponsor: Verizon #14 ponsor: ABC Supply Co. #15 sponsor: Mi-Jack #17 sponsor: Automatic Fire Sprinklers #18 sponsor: Sonny's Real Pit BBQ #19 sponsor: Boy Scouts of America #20 sponsor: Fuzzy's Ultra Premium Vodka #22 sponsor: Hurco #25 sponsor: Ipiranga #26 sponsor: Royal Crown Cola #27 sponsor: GoDaddy.com #28 sponsor: Sun Drop Citrus Soda/DHL #30 sponsor: Office Depot #38 sponsor: NTB/Service Central #39 sponsor: Angie's List #41 sponsor: ECat #50 sponsor: Target 50th Anniversary #64 sponsor: F. P. Journe Watches #67 sponsor: Dollar General #77 sponsor: HP #78 sponsor: Nuclear Clean Air Energy #83 sponsor: NovoLog FlexPen #98 sponsor: Barracuda Networks #99 sponsor: BraunAbility Wheelchair Vans 65. Taupin The Great posted: 05.27.2012 - 10:45 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Dario is just a punk. Anyone else but a Ganassi driver would've given an upstart like Sato room. Apparently, he didn't care enough about his own best friend's death last year to realize that there are lives in the balance in these races. 66. 10andJoe posted: 05.27.2012 - 10:46 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) >Sato was not erratic or impulsive No, but he /does/ have the proven habit of driving with his right foot instead of his brain when doing the latter would win him races, but the former puts him into the wall. >If the DW12 chassis keeps putting on races like this one, IndyCar will position itself to eat into NASCAR's ratings because NASCAR's product is terrible right now. We need to (a) boot Marty Reid into lunar orbit and (b) get races on NBC proper instead of Versus/NBCSN, but yeah, Indy's racing action has been consistently superior this year. Whoda thunk? 67. 10andJoe posted: 05.27.2012 - 10:47 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Also, judging by some of the comments here, I wonder how Chip Ganassi has time to run a race team in between stealing peoples' women, kicking their dogs and breaking the windows in their trucks (since that's the only explanation for the level of animosity). 68. Mike posted: 05.27.2012 - 10:54 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) There was no way Sato could have waited until the backstretch. He got the run down the front; as the commentators repeatedly pointed out, if you let off it takes about a lap to get your momentum back. If Sato had let off the gas there, he'd have been done. There would have been no way he could've kept up his momentum and caught Franchitti again. Had Dario not run Sato down below the white line, it would have worked. Dario knew Sato was there - he was far enough up that Dario could probably see him, and even if he couldn't his spotter certainly had informed him. Instead of racing Sato cleanly, Dario forced him into a lose-lose situation. It's a shame that that kind of move won someone the Indy 500. 69. martin-n-rusty posted: 05.27.2012 - 11:13 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) 66. Unless they forgot about it, NBC proper won't see NASCAR for awhile, especially with the stunt that they tried to pull with Dateline years back (trying to put a muslim looking man into a NASCAR grandstand, and trying to get a reaction out of it, all while NASCAR was looking to re-up on a TV deal. 65, 68. So what is he supposed to do? Let him by anyway because "oh, I already have a couple of Borg-Warner Trophies"?!? It wasn't even that aggressive of a block. As a one time football coach once said... "HELLO!!! YOU PLAY TO WIN THE GAME!!!" 70. Taupin The Great posted: 05.27.2012 - 11:27 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) 69- Isn't it amazing how Ganassi drivers basically get treated by race announcers and the like as if they have just won the Congressional Medal Of Honor by nearly putting someone's life at risk to win a race, and then if a Penske driver gets penalized by IndyCar for blocking, they turn around and treat the officials the same way they treat Ganassi drivers? Think about it. 71. DaleSrFanForever posted: 05.27.2012 - 11:27 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) For the record, I am all about launching Marty "You Are Witnessing History" Reid into orbit. Anyone watch the 210 NASCAR Homestead race as JJ won his 5th straight title? "That hammering you hear is the final coffin in the nail for the competitors of the 48 team". 72. Taupin The Great posted: 05.27.2012 - 11:30 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) By the way, that coach had a losing record. What does he know about winning? 73. Critic posted: 05.27.2012 - 11:46 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) 66 / 67: I am well aware of Sato's reputation and have even used those same adjectives to describe him in the past, but in my view it is irrelevant to the incident in question unless it can be proven that his move was unreasonable and a result of his temperament. I don't believe that is true, which is why I highlighted what took place on lap 199 and why Sato was not able to draft alongside Franchitti until after the start-finish line. What is objectionable to me is portraying Franchitti's maneuver as a brilliant defensive gambit while also asserting that Sato had no right to make his overtaking maneuver; or that Sato should have waited, even though we have no way of being certain that another opportunity would have presented itself. I think that's incongruous. In the first instance, the only reason that Sato spun is because Franchitti did not allow him enough room to safely (notice the term I am using here) navigate through the corner; Sato completed a similar attempt on Dixon the lap before without difficulty. Franchitti lost his right to the inside line of the corner, then put Sato into a position where he had no option but to go below the white line or to initiate contact with him. All of these things are potentially justifiable on the last lap of the most important single seater race in America depending on the amount of risk you are willing to assume, even though I wonder whether Tony Kanaan or Scott Dixon would have been given more consideration than was shown Sato. If we are going to acclaim Franchitti's brilliance, however, then we must also recognize that Sato's move was perfectly legitimate, and the only reason Franchitti won the race is because Sato was forced to drink from a poison chalice. Franchitti was still very fortunate not to be collected by Sato when the latter lost control. I am not directing this to anyone specifically, but it's rather convenient to be enthusiastic about Franchitti's victory while also shifting any and all responsibility for the incident to Sato. There is a reason why Sato spun: Franchitti's intransigence. I don't believe it's appropriate to compensate for the nature of that reality by characterizing Sato unfairly. Franchitti was either superbly cruel or his incompetence nearly contributed to a more significant accident, but in neither interpretation do I believe that Sato was unjustified. 69: I don't think that I ever came out and condemned Franchitti. My post was largely a response to the idea that Sato had no right to try overtaking in that situation, and one specific portrayal here of Franchitti's conduct. 74. Steve posted: 05.28.2012 - 12:06 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Total Driver Experience in the Field: 103 previous starts in 95 prior Indianapolis 500s. Most Starts: Helio Castroneves (11) Total IndyCar Wins by Drivers in the Field: 173 Total National Championships: 11 Most Wins: 31 (Bourdais) Most Titles: 4 (Bourdais, Franchitti) Rookies at Indianapolis: 8 (Rubens Barrichello, James Jakes, Simon Pagenaud, Katherine Legge, Josef Newgarden, Bryan Clauson, Wade Cunningham, and Jean Alesi) "Where in the World?" North America: 12 drivers South America: 6 drivers Europe: 10 drivers Pacific Region: 5 drivers Most lead changes ever at Indianapolis: 34. This is only the second IndyCar race since the 2002 California 500 (44 lead changes) with at least 30 lead changes (2003 Michigan 400). I can't recall seeing IndyCars pass this easily since the days of CART's Hanford device at Michigan & California. Fontana in September should be a dandy! What a terrific photo op with Dario, Dixie, & TK paying tribute to their late friend Dan Wheldon. I almost thought my pick since before qualifying (Dixon) was going to pick up the lead in Turn 1 but Dario was very lucky to not be swept up by Sato. I could tell he didn't want to pour the milk over his head, but his facial expression said, "Hell, Dan did it this way last year, so why bloody not?" Marco can't catch a break at Indy. When will the Andretti Curse finally subside? I hope Mario gets to see his grandson win at Indy. Michel Jourdain Jr. starts his first IndyCar race in 7 1/2 years and finishes a respectable 19th. He is the first Mexican driver at Indy since Adrian Fernandez in 2005. Though he didn't show it, he also is the most "rusty" driver to return to IndyCar since John Andretti in 2007, after 13 years of a "stricktly stock" racing diet. I noted 103 previous Indy 500 starts in this lineup, down from 144 last year. That's the least since 2005 (93 starts). The least in the post-war era is 70 in 1997. The most experienced drivers not in this year's lineup: John Andretti (12), Tomas Scheckter (10), Vitor Meira (9), Paul Tracy (7), Bruno Junqueira, and Buddy Rice (6 each) did not have rides, Danica (7) embarked on a tintop career, Davey Hamilton (11) likely retired (if you recall his ABC interview) due to Dan Wheldon's (9) accident in Las Vegas. Combined, these driver account for 77 Indy 500 starts; add that to the 103 among the 33 drivers this year, this would have been the most experienced 500 field since 1993, when the likes of Mario, Al, and Gary Bettenhausen boosted the total to 209 prior starts. Obviously, the primary reason most of these drivers didn't have a car available is because of the limited number of engines available. Don't think of doom and gloom, think of it as the new Russia trying to emerge as a capitalist nation after years of communism as the USSR. Things will be MUCH better a year from now; the transition just takes time. Charlie Kimball is the best finishing American today, but the best-placed American has never been that far back. 6th place Alex Barron was the top Yank in 2003. 75. cjs3872 posted: 05.28.2012 - 12:48 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Steve, the Andretti curse will never come to an end until there's no Andretti racing at Indy any more. Sad, but true, and I believe the Andretti curse goes back to the 1981 race and controversy that erupted because of it. however, there have been some stupid things done by the Andrettis or their teams there since. For instance, Mario Andretti would probably never have been in that wreck with Kevin Cogan in 1982, if he had been back in the second row where he belonged, something that Gordon Johncock scolded him about over the radio, and in an ESPN Classic special airing of that race about eight years ago. Mario was also fortunate not to have been involved in the Danny Sullivan spin in 1985 when Mario crowded Sullivan into turn one, similar to what happened on the final lap of this year's race. Now to this year's chapter. Remember how Marco was dominating the race? Well, his team made one of the dumbest decisions I've seen at Indy in years when they had Marco pit from the lead. That put him back in traffic, and he was never able to recover, eventually crashing in turn one. That pit stop strategy was never going to work, because it provided Marco with no advantage at all, and it put him behind. Sometimes what has happened to the Andrettis over the years is a case of bad luck. What happened today was a result of one of the worst tactical decisions I've ever seen a team make in the Indianapolis 500. 76. martin-n-rusty posted: 05.28.2012 - 12:48 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Doesn't matter how much that coach lost, the statement STILL holds true, you play to win the game. You don't play it just to play it (though I'm sure those "lololotuses would disagree). And while I agree that call in Edmonton a few years back on Castroneves was wrong a few years back, now that the "correct" call was made, it was wrong?!? how does that fit, other than you hate the driver?!? 77. martin-n-rusty posted: 05.28.2012 - 12:53 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Critic, maybe there was another post in the 68 spot, I know on here, that happens from time to time, so sorry for any misplaced venom 78. 10andJoe posted: 05.28.2012 - 1:04 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) #69: I meant that NBC should get IndyCar, not NASCAR. 79. martin-n-rusty posted: 05.28.2012 - 1:21 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Oh, well that, I'm sure that can be done easy if they still have races on the old Versus (now NBC Sports Channel). What do they have on during a summer afternoon anyway? 80. kup posted: 05.28.2012 - 1:23 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) UPS - universal points system Points = Distance / Aver.Finish After 2012 Indy 500 250 James Hinchcliffe 202 Helio Castroneves 152 Simon Pagenaud 142 Dario Franchitti 125 Will Power - just 5th - not a leader! 123 Scott Dixon 113 Rubens Barrichello - rookie of the year! 106 Ryan Hunter-Reay 104 JR Hildebrand 104 Oriol Servia 100 Ryan Briscoe 96 EJ Viso 90 Justin Wilson 84 Tony Kanaan - compare with Rubens? 83 Charlie Kimball 82 Gragam Rahal 75 Takuma Sato - comare with Honda? 70 Sebastian Bourdais 66 James Jakes 64 Ed Carpenter 62 Marco Andretti - not Michael, not Mario, but Marco. 42 Mike Conway 81. Critic posted: 05.28.2012 - 2:31 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) 77: In retrospect, the confusion is my entirely doing. I was under the impression I was post 65; as it turned out, my initial offering was 63. My apologies, although I think my response to what I interpreted as something directed at me might have helped clarified my position to an extent. This is what happens when you don't post on here for two years! 82. joey2448 posted: 05.28.2012 - 4:35 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Ok....great Indy 500, the new car races great, the lead changes were awesome to see! Too bad it ended under caution but still an exciting finish. I still haven't watched the crash slow enough to see exactly who was at fault there, but it looked like Sato should've waited to make his move. But, he did have a run on Dario, and I think just about any driver would've made that move. I mean, it's the last lap of the Indianapolis 500! Sato made that exact same move one lap earlier in turn one on Dixon, when Franchitti passed Dixon to take the lead and Sato followed him through. It worked that time, so Sato probably expected it to work again. Also, one more thing about Sato's crash, I thought maybe he was hurt because ABC didn't focus much on him at the end, opting instead to show Franchitti celebrating and other drivers interviews, which I can kind of understand. But all they had was a quick interview with Sato at the end of the broadcast, and that was it. Seems like they should have had more coverage on him. Man, I can't wait for the next superspeedway race! 83. NicoRosbergFan posted: 05.28.2012 - 4:53 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) How many times did Sato make a move on the frontstretch MUCH later than his move on Franchitti, and the driver gave him the line? Quite a few times. 84. NicoRosbergFan posted: 05.28.2012 - 4:54 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Also, did it seem like Ganassi was working it so that Dixon was going to LET Franchitti win. If you did the math, it was going to work out that Franchitti would be second on the last lap? 85. Anonymous posted: 05.28.2012 - 5:05 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) I was pulling for Sato all race and he was so close! One thing, for everyone saying he made a stupid move and went too early, what else could he have done? We saw many times throughout the race that lifting wipes off so much speed and momentum that it takes more than a full lap to get back up to speed and with the run that he had, what options did he have? Push on, or back off - and on the last lap, all he could do was push on. I don't think it was stupid or foolish and it's a massive shame that it went wrong, but this is a race, Sato is a race driver and he did all that he could. I also think that people are being too hard on him because he's relatively new to the sport - I think that if say, Tony Kanaan was in Sato's shoes, he probably would have done the exact same thing. 86. Baker posted: 05.28.2012 - 8:03 am Rate this comment: (1) (0) Dario winning 5 would make me sick. He does have 10 percent the talent Foyt, Mears, Unser's or even Mario and Michael Andretti. His 3rd win is more proof of what I believe to be a completely talent depleted racing series. The only thing keeping IRL alive is the more exciting racing style, higher speeds everyone loves and the 500. I firmly believe the top drivers from NASCAR could make the jump and be successful unlike the open wheel guys to NASCAR have done. 87. NicoRosbergFan posted: 05.28.2012 - 8:19 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Baker, that is a pretty big statement, considering that no one EVER has made the switch from NASCAR to open-wheel, yet Foyt, Hurtubise, Andretti, Rutherford, Al and Bobby Unser, Mark Donohue, Dan Gurney, Pedro Rodriguez, Montoya, Johncock, and Stewart all have made the switch and been competitive. In actuality, your statement is false and based on the last 5 years only. Also, consider what equipment drivers had when they made the transition one way or the other: Donnie Allison finished 4th at Indy, but he drove for Foyt, but Papis stunk driving for Germain. The only Cup drivers to come close to success were Dick Rathmann and Paul Goldsmith, and they never won. 88. Greg posted: 05.28.2012 - 10:55 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Mechanical DNFs: Newgarden - engine Clauson - handling Hunter-Reay - it was a CV joint that ultimately failed on his car. And Sato is a DNF because of the last lap crash. 89. Jim posted: 05.28.2012 - 10:59 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) If it hasn't been said first ever Indy 500 win for the number 50. 90. Baker posted: 05.28.2012 - 11:16 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Dude that was many years ago when open wheel had real talent. The guys right now are minor leaguers compared to those you just mentioned. 91. cjs3872 posted: 05.28.2012 - 11:58 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) And NicoRosbergFan, on the topic of NASCAR drivers trying IndyCars back years ago, you forgot to mention that Cale Yarborough ran two entire seasons for Gene White's team during the factory pullout in NASCAR, and didn't fare well, though White's team wasn't exacty a front-line team, and that Bobby Allison drove at Indy for Penske in 1973 and '75. He was the fastest rookie in 1973, but never got a shot in the race, as he suffered a broken connecting rod bolt on the very first lap. He did do a little better in 1975, leading during the first series of pit stops and running as high as sixth before gearbox problems knocked him out. But that was before Penske became a top-tier team. LeeRoy Yarbrough also tried his hand in three Indianapolis 500s, but never factored in a positive way. His most famous moment at Indy came when he and Parnelli Jones tangled 100 miles into the 1967 race when Jones drove the turbine. It was also a crash at Indy in 1971 that led to the mental health problems that eventually landed him in a mental health institution and may have led to his premature death in 1984. Of the NASCAR drivers that tried Indy before the Indy 500 was run on Sunday for the first time in 1974, only Donnie Allison drove for a front-line team, and he had the worst car for that team, A.J. Foyt Racing. And Donnie was shuttling between Indy and Charlotte during the time that the race was being run both times he ran at Indy. Donnie won the World 600 in 1970 six days before the Indy 500, in which he finished fourth. 1971 was much harder for Donnie considering that the Indianapolis 500 and World 600 were run on successive days. Donnie was sixth at Indy, then flew to Charlotte where he finished second for the Wood Brothers behind brother Bobby the following day. Then he flew back to Indy for the banquet that night. Oddly enough, the most successful NASCAR enterprise at Indy prior to NASCAR coming to Indy in 1994 were the Wood Brothers, who Ford brought to Indy in 1965 after some sloppy pitwork in 1963, and the Woods were a significant part of Jim Clark's win, as he spent a total of only 40 seconds in the pits on his two pit stops. 92. 10andJoe posted: 05.28.2012 - 12:06 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) >Oh, well that, I'm sure that can be done easy if they still have races on the old Versus (now NBC Sports Channel). What do they have on during a summer afternoon anyway? Most likely "reality TV". Ick. The talent level in IndyCar is the highest it's been since the merger (and, one might argue, in the entire history of the IRL), and the racing is outstanding. What's needed is national exposure. ABC/ESPN doesn't care about anything racing anymore, and once again we need to put Marty Reid into orbit (preferably on a Kerbal Space Program rocket). NBCSN does an excellent job of covering the races but...well, it's NBCSN, which a lot of people don't get (and is a premium channel on 50% of satellite TV even). What's also needed is better purse money, but that'll come with growing exposure and TV coverage. So we need to - give ABC the boot - get consitent coverage of qualifying, every race on NBCSN or Speed - get half or more the races on network TV (NBC preusmably) - also, lets get Bryan Clauson and Paul Tracy in full-season rides... 93. DaleSrFanForever posted: 05.28.2012 - 3:23 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I watched this race and the Coke 600. Some things to know about me: I am a Southern bred NASCAR fan who knows very little about open wheel racing. My knowledge of its history is very short. I know they ran the first Indy 500 in 1911 which was won by Ray Horroun. I know Rick Mears was a cool cat who won the Indy 500 four times, including 1984 by 2 laps. I know AJ Foyt, who also won Indy four times, was and still is a bad @$$ motherf***er. I know Al Unser also won Indy 4 times, his brother won it 3 times, and his son won it twice. I know Mario Angretti won it in 1969, and from that point forward neither himself or any of his family members have won it despite dominating everywheree else, often losing in heartbreaking fashion. I also knw Johnny Rutherford won Indy three times even though he only completed 500 miles twice. With that said, this race kicked the Coke 600's ass. Badly. If this were the 1984 Indy 500, this race would be Rick Mears and the Coke 600 would be the rest of the field. I found the racing here quite entertaining. The drafting and slingshot moves were just awesome. Dan Wheldon's chassis put on one hell of a show. They addressed the safety concerns while also making sure it put on a good race, something NASCAR failed badly on with their COT. Of course while Indy Car got champion and 2 time Indy 500 winner Danny Boy to help with the design, NASCAR got the hack Brett Bodine to design their's. How was Brett's NASCAR career? One career win that wasn't really a win, but there was a scoring error. Ironic, on the same day Quaker State got their first win in NASCAR as a primary sponsor since Brett's only "win" in 1990 in a stinker of a race in cars designed by Brett, Indy Car put on an awesome display in chassis designed by the race's defending winner, Dan Wheldon. In other words, it showcased the differences between a hack and a champion. 94. cjs3872 posted: 05.28.2012 - 3:56 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I'm not sure they addressed all the safety concerns about the car, DSFF. There was one concern before the race thatwasn't addressed, and that was what would happen when a car hit the wall. Three times in practice and qualifying, when a car hit the wall with its side, it got airborne and wanted to barrel roll. When Mike Conway crashed, it happened again, a situation which was made worse when Will Power's car drove under it and actually over the retaining wall. It's just incredibly fortunate that Conway's helmet didn't hit the catch fencing, which around most of the track at Indy, is still inadequate, as where Conway crashed yesterday, as well as in turn four at the end of the 2010 race, the catch fence is still made of barbed wire, instead of the type of fencing you see at most places. Had Conway's car continued it's barrel roll in the direction it was heading, considering it had already cleared the height of the retaining wall in the air, Conway's helmet would almost certainly have hit the fencing, and instead of such a great race, we would be talking about Indy's first raceday fatality since 1973. So Indy dodged a huge bullet yesterday. And why are a lot of people complaining about what Dario did on the final lap yesterday? What he did on the final lap yesterday was no different than what Mario Andretti did when Danny Sullivan challenged him for the lead 300 miles into the 1985 race. Andretti moved down the track and Sullivan forced the issue and spun exiting turn one as a result. The only difference was that Sullivan didn't hit anything, nor did Andretti hit him. And when Sullivan caught Andretti again 20 laps later, Andretti did exactly the same thing, and Sullivan tried to pass him again, but this time succeeded, and was never headed again. So if you're going to criticize Dario Franchitti for what he did yesterday, Mario Andretti deserves the same criticism for what he did in 1985, because he did exactly the same thing, only he did it twice. 95. Anonymous posted: 05.28.2012 - 6:51 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) "And why are a lot of people complaining about what Dario did on the final lap yesterday?" I won't critisize Franchitti's move. But at the same time, CJS, you shouldn't call Sato's move "stupid". I'm actually dissapointed that you would refer to it as "the stupidist move you have ever seen". Neither driver did anything wrong, they both did the exact same thing as the other - make an on-edge, all out pass to try and win the Indy 500. For one, it worked. For the other, it didn't. If you think Sato's move was poor, then you must also think Franchitti's move was poor. And on the same token, if you think Franchitti's move was poor, then you must think Sato's move was poor - because they both did the exact same thing as each other; race hard for the win. And there's absolutely nothing wrong with that. 96. 10andJoe posted: 05.28.2012 - 7:12 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) There is a difference between "racing hard for the win" and "diving in below the white line in turn one when /every time/ a car has dove beneath the white line they've been consigned shortly thereafter to the distributors of used Dallara parts". 97. Rob posted: 05.28.2012 - 7:27 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Sato didnt get wrecked, he just drove down into a spot that wasnt there and ran out of talent. Its the biggest race in the world and he wasnt about to give it up. Dario is 3-3 for winning his 500's under yellow, even the IndyLights race he was in the booth for on Friday ended under yellow. By the way glad the rolling road block Alesi got parked, even though he will be back next year..... scary ride for Power and Conway too, glad theyre allright. Conway dosent belong in these cars, he's too crash prone. He needs to go race in GP2 or something. 98. cjs3872 posted: 05.28.2012 - 10:02 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) Anonymous (#95), any time a driver makes a move that has no chance of working, I would classify that as a stupid, or idiotic move. That move Sato made could have wrecked the entire front of the field, and the guy running sixth, seventh, or eighth might have won, much like what happened in the Nationwide Series event at Daytona earlier this year, when the guy running 11th entering turn three won the race. I made that same critique of the move Clint Bowyer tried on Gordon and Johnson at Martinsville, and I stand by that as well. I didn't refer to Sato's move as the stupidest I've ever seen, t least I don't remember refering to it that way. What I said was that Dario Franchitti gave Sato enough rope to hang himself, which he promptly did. Now I did classify the decision to bring Marco Andretti into the pits near the 200-mile mark as about the dumbest pit decision I've ever seen, because there was nothing to be gained from it. And Rob, Jean Alesi and Simona DiSilvestro being rolling road blocks had nothing to do with the drivers, but rather their horrendously slow engines. And it's obvious to me that the reason Bryan Clauson fell out wasn't a handling problem, but rather a mechanical problem. Clauson's car should have been able to immediately return to the race, but since it spent some 18 laps getting reparined, his spin was probably caused by a broken suspension piece, which was never properly repaired, so his team parked his car for the day shortly after he returned to the race. 99. NicoRosbergFan posted: 05.29.2012 - 4:46 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) cjs, Sato made that same move many many many times during the race, and quite a few of those times he made it later than his move on Dario, and every other driver he passed respected his line. 100. jC... posted: 05.29.2012 - 8:30 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) 100! Great race! 101. TeamPlayersBlue posted: 05.29.2012 - 9:48 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Attendance: 220,000 102. martin-n-rusty posted: 05.29.2012 - 1:21 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Joe, it's like that for the other Swiss drivers as well, not just de Silvestro's 103. dion posted: 05.29.2012 - 3:49 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) from Indycar.com Official Results Pos. Driver Laps Running / Reason Out 1 Dario Franchitti 200 Running 2 Scott Dixon 200 Running 3 Tony Kanaan 200 Running 4 Oriol Servia 200 Running 5 Ryan Briscoe 200 Running 6 James Hinchcliffe 200 Running 7 Justin Wilson 200 Running 8 Charlie Kimball 200 Running 9 Townsend Bell 200 Running 10 Helio Castroneves 200 Running 11 Rubens Barrichello 200 Running 12 Alex Tagliani 200 Running 13 Graham Rahal 200 Running 14 J.R. Hildebrand 200 Running 15 James Jakes 200 Running 16 Simon Pagenaud 200 Running 17 Takuma Sato 199 Contact 18 E.J. Viso 199 Running 19 Michel Jourdain 199 Running 20 Sebastien Bourdais 199 Running 21 Ed Carpenter 199 Running 22 Katherine Legge 199 Running 23 Ana Beatriz 190 Running 24 Marco Andretti 187 Contact 25 Josef Newgarden 161 Mechanical 26 Sebastian Saavedra 143 Electrical 27 Ryan Hunter-Reay 123 Suspension 28 Will Power 79 Contact 29 Mike Conway 78 Contact 30 Bryan Clauson 46 Mechanical 31 Wade Cunningham 42 Electrical 32 Simona de Silvestro 10 Handling 33 Jean Alesi 9 Handling 104. cjs3872 posted: 05.29.2012 - 4:42 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Dion, that proves my point about the Bryan Clauson situation. There was no reason his car should have been sidelined for 18 laps after a simple spin, unless a mechanical problem caused that spin. Now whether or not he should have been in that race is another story, but is was obvious he had a mechanical failure of some kind. But the two Lotus cars did not have "handling" issues. They were parked by race officials for being too slow, especially down the straightaways. And had officials not parked them, the teams would have, as they would have been start-and-parks in the Indianapolis 500, just to get the $250,000+ it pays to start the race. 105. 10andJoe posted: 05.30.2012 - 11:05 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) And now, it appears that, instead of the number of entries increasing after Indy, it's actually going /down/ by one, with Dragon being forced to have a "two drivers, one car" situation for the rest of the year thanks to engine supply issues. 106. Rob posted: 05.31.2012 - 4:15 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) @post98 I know it was because of their terrible engines that lotus got parked, and I never mentioned Clauson, I knew what his situation was, I was talking about Mike Conway. 107. cjs3872 posted: 05.31.2012 - 8:04 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Rob, what I was referring to were the three cars listed on this site as being out of the race due to "handling", and none of those were accurate. We all know that the two Lotus cars were flagged off the course because they were too slow and that Bryan Clauson had a mechanical problem, which was backed up by dion's post regarding the official reasons out of the race. And as for Mike Conway, he has beem known as a loose cannon in the track, but was good enough to win at Long Beach, so he can't be terrible. And remember that before his horrific crash at the end of the 2010 Indianapolis 500, Conway was leading and had a chance to win had things fallen his way, so I don't buy that he doesn't belong at Indy. There were drivers who didn't belong in the race, which is true regarding every Indianapolis 500 field, including Clauson in this year's race, but Conway was not one of them. 108. 10andJoe posted: 05.31.2012 - 12:08 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) #78, 64 status: parked 109. 10andJoe posted: 05.31.2012 - 12:10 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) #15 status: crash 110. ams32 posted: 06.01.2012 - 11:45 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Dario's whining would be enough for me to not be able to stand the guy. His crying over the random draw at texas put me over the edge. If he had drawn 3rd and Power 25th he wouldve smugly said "those are the rules" and criticized Power and Penske for whining (which they probably wouldnt have done- that seems to be more Ganassi and Dario's thing). But the biggest thing I can't stand. The media's NEED to show Ashley Judd every time he wins a damn race. She was shown 3 times in the first 10 seconds after he won and was the first person ABC talked to. I get it. Shes in movies. They're married. Thats great. But she has NOTHING to do with him winning a race EVER and they talk to her like she's the sole reason he drives into victory lane. Give it a rest all ready. How bout talking to his race straegist....or even that smug assclown Ganassi first. Something tells me had Sato not put the car in the wall and won, Mrs. Sato (if there is one) wouldnt have been the first person interviewed after the race. If for no other reason than to not hear Judd ramble, I hope Dario never wins Indy...or another IndyCar event...again 111. cjs3872 posted: 06.02.2012 - 2:10 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Ams32, Dario had every right to complain about the random draw that effectively decided the race at Texas last year, because his main competition wound up at the front and he and teammate Scott Dixon wound up in the back, and without a caution flag, it was literally impossible to get back to the front from 25th position in a 170-mile race, no matter how fast his car was. He had no chance because of the draw. In fact, he was a bit fortunate to finish as high up as he did. When they had twin-bill races like that in the past, they just lined the field up as they finished in the fist race. They should either have done that, or inverted the entire field for the second race in the name of fairness. When a blind draw determines the outcome of a race, as that one did, the drivers and teams have every right to be screaming mad if they were on the short end. 112. ams32 posted: 06.02.2012 - 6:08 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) i agree with what your saying cjs. About the inversion and such. My point was that if the roles were reversed I can very easily see Dario smugly saying that Power shouldnt complain. Not that Will would've said anything. I simply don't like the fact that Dario complained when you know dang well he'd been perfectly fine with it had Will started 25th and he 3rd. It was the same odds for everyone. I def. agree the format was crap but Dario acted like he solely was screwed by the draw. Lots of guys got the shaft with poor starting spots. My complaint was with his attitude. Not with the format. I am in total agreement that that shouldn't have even happened 113. 10andJoe posted: 06.02.2012 - 10:37 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) #15 status: crash Sato didn't finish the race. Why IndyCar shows him as 'running' is beyond me. 114. Anonymous posted: 06.24.2012 - 11:25 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) #15 status: crash #78, 64 status: parked 115. Ed posted: 08.02.2012 - 12:30 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) First time since 2007 that the #4 car didn't finish 2nd. 116. RaceFanX posted: 09.17.2012 - 2:13 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) He made it count, this was Dario's only points-paying IndyCar win of 2012 (he also won a heat race at Iowa Speedway). While Dario had come into 2012 as the three-time defending champion he had some rough luck and would4 not seriously contend to make it four-in-a-row. 117. Anonymous posted: 09.18.2012 - 4:24 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Ana Beatriz only completed 190 laps in this race not 199. 118. Rob posted: 09.19.2012 - 9:18 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) @post 117. there were all kinds of errors on this page. sato is still listed as running. even though, he crashed on the last lap and never came back across the line. 119. Rocky Lore posted: 12.03.2012 - 9:50 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Alesi and DeSilvestro should not have their status listed as "handling." They should be listed as either "Parked" or "Too slow." The Indy officials blackflagged them for failing to meet the 105% rule. 120. startandparkfan posted: 12.03.2012 - 4:13 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) What is the 105% rule, I'm not a big indycar follower? 121. Rocky Lore posted: 12.08.2012 - 4:19 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) To startandparkfan, the 105% rule is used to ensure all the cars on the track are performing relative to the leaders. Like NASCAR, if a driver is not making a minimum speed compared to the front runners, race officials can black flag a driver and force him off the track. Formula One has something similar for qualifying called the 107% rule. 122. 83andJoe posted: 02.23.2013 - 6:22 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) #15 status: Accident 123. 83andJoe posted: 06.24.2013 - 10:46 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Sato took the white flag in second, but failed to complete the final lap. He was not 'running', regardless of what IndyCar's official results claim. 124. Schroeder51 posted: 11.14.2013 - 4:42 pm Rate this comment: (2) (0) Dario Franchitti's last career Indy Car win. 125. sk posted: 11.14.2013 - 9:23 pm Rate this comment: (4) (0) Absolutely gobsmacked that this has turned out to be Dario's final win, just as 2011 was for Dan. There is some solace to be found in that Dario can grow old with his loved ones and look back on his multitudinous racing achievements, but to see a driving champion's career end under anything less than his/her own terms is sad for all who love the sport. Best wishes and the fullest of happiness and health to one of our generation's greatest. 126. Anthony posted: 12.30.2015 - 7:44 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Franchitti's third Indy 500 win - all were under caution. 127. Jolly Mean Giant posted: 01.01.2016 - 7:58 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Comments #122 and #123 are correct. Sato was battling for the lead on the final lap when he crashed in turn 1. He did not come back around to take the checkered flag, thus he was definitely not running at the conclusion at the event. Yes, IndyCar's official results may say he DID finish the race, but they are not perfect... 128. Minnowfur posted: 05.22.2016 - 9:58 pm Rate this comment: (1) (1) Whaats the 105% rule?/odd DNF 129. Maverick11 posted: 05.22.2016 - 10:02 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) If you are traveling at 105% of the lap times as the leader, (I.e. the leader has a 50 second lap, and you have a 52.5 second lap), then you get black flagged for being too slow. 130. Jolly Mean Giant posted: 08.31.2016 - 4:42 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) First Indy 500 start for James Jakes, Katherine Legge, Josef Newgarden, and Bryan Clauson. Only Indy 500 starts for Rubens Barrichello and Wade Cunningham. Last Indy 500 starts for Michel Jourdain, Jr. and Mike Conway. (Not going to do anymore of these until some years have passed since it's hard to tell which drivers have made their lone Indy appearance and which ones have made their last in recent 500s until some years down the road...) 131. Jolly Mean Giant posted: 08.31.2016 - 4:43 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) ^Only Indy start for Jean Alesi as well, whose lone 500 ended with him being flagged off the track after just a handful of laps for being too slow. 132. RaceFanX posted: 05.24.2018 - 9:58 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) This race neatly summed up the complete failure of Lotus' 2012 IndyCar engine program. The brand started the season with five full-time teams but by the Indy 500 arrived four of them (BHA / Curb-Agajanian, Dreyer & Reinhold Racing, and the two-car effort of the previously named Lotus Dragon Racing) had all already thrown in the towel on the uncompetitive engine and switched to Chevrolet or Honda. Simona de Silvestro and Keith Wiggins' #78 entry also tried to switch but couldn't get a lease on a new engine so it became the lone full-time team to stay with Lotus. de Silvestro and F1 veteran Jean Alesi, the latter's Fan Force United #64 being an Indy one-off, were both well off the pace throughout the month of May, saved only by just 33 cars attempting the race, and as shown here they were both quickly flagged off the track on race day due to the lack of speed. The British brand pulled out of IndyCar at the end of the season. 133. Jolly Mean Giant posted: 06.03.2018 - 1:46 am Rate this comment: (1) (1) First Indy 500 starts for James Jakes, Simon Pagenaud, Katherine Legge, Josef Newgarden, and Bryan Clauson. Only Indy 500 start to date for Rubens Barrichello (highly doubt he'll ever compete again), Wade Cunningham, and Jean Alesi. Last Indy 500 start to date for Michel Jourdain, Jr. and Mike Conway (almost certainly last ever for Conway since he quit running ovals altogether following his crash in this race) 134. Jolly Mean Giant posted: 06.03.2018 - 7:35 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Huh, I completely forgot that I'd actually posted that on here once already... 135. cautionlitenews posted: 10.22.2018 - 1:16 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Dario said it best in victory lane "DW would have been proud of that one, coming from the back" Dan would have been one of the first drivers to run to VL and give Dario a big embrace and would have said, "let me win another one to tie you again!" Looking back, there was no better winner of this race than Dario. 136. SweetRich posted: 02.29.2020 - 6:17 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) The commentators for the race were Marty Reid, Scott Goodyear and Eddie Cheever. The pit road reporters were Jerry Punch, Vince Welch, Jamie Little and Rick DeBruhl. 137. Rich posted: 12.23.2020 - 6:37 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) The studio host was Brent Musburger. 138. Frank posted: 04.13.2021 - 10:43 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) In Lap Leader Breakdown there is a typo: Charle Kimball, missed "i" in Charlie. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ *Post a comment:* Your comment may not appear immediately - all comments must be approved by the moderator. Name: Comment: