Andretti Green Racing hopes Miller Lite Carb Day is a good indication of the Indianapolis 500 finish. Tony Kanaan, who will start the 91st Indianapolis 500 from the middle of the front row, topped the speed chart for the final practice session, the final opportunity for teams to fine-tune their cars before Race Day. Kanaan, driving the No. 27 Canadian Club for Andretti Green Racing, topped the speed chart with a quick lap of 225.467 mph (39.9171 seconds). Teammates Dario Franchitti (223.807 mph in the No. 27 Canadian Club car) and Michael Andretti (223.575 mph in the No. 39 Jim Beam/Motorola car) were right behind.
Michael Andretti, Dario Franchitti & Tony Kanaan completed their final practice session for the 91st Indianapolis 500.
"I was delighted by the speed of the Canadian Club car. It was the fastest four-lap average I've had all week. It was a really, really great job by the whole Andretti Green team: all of my teammates, the engineers, everybody.
The Indianapolis 500 will be Sunday, May 27, at 1 p.m. (EDT) with ABC Sports providing live coverage beginning at 12 p.m. (EDT). It can also be heard live by XM Satellite Radio subscribers on XM channel 145, the exclusive home of the IndyCar Series.
Dario Franchitti drove the #27 Canadian Club car to a seventh place starting position in the Indy Japan 300. Franchitti posted a best-lap speed of 203.723 mph (26.8600 secs) on his first qualifying lap.
"The Canadian Club car has been okay this weekend. I was running wide open in the qualifying run. I think we're in good shape for the race. I think all four AGR cars will do well."
Dan Wheldon said his victory in the 2006 season finale was a statement of what to expect in '07 from Target Chip Ganassi Racing. Point taken, Dan, and thanks for the warning. Wheldon became the first IndyCar Series driver to win at the same racetrack three years in a row, dominating the season-opening XM Satellite Radio Indy 300 under the lights at Miami's Homestead Raceway.
The victory at Chicagoland Speedway last September allowed Wheldon to tie Sam Hornish Jr. in championship points, but Hornish claimed his third series title based on the first tiebreaker – victories (his four to Wheldon's two). There appears to be another spirited battle brewing, with two 1.5-mile ovals and a temporary street course race on the docket before teams set up shop at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
"It's a great way to open up the season," said Wheldon, the 2005 series champion who started from the pole for the fifth time in his career. "I think with Ganassi Racing -- this is not a sales pitch, this is the truth -- we've worked very hard over the winter to try to perfect what we started last year.
"I think I definitely underestimated how difficult the transition would be coming to a new team. And I think some of what you saw tonight is just the experience.
"Hopefully, this bodes well for the rest of the season."
Wheldon is familiar with the omen: Four times in the previous six years the driver to win the opener went on to win the league title.
Wheldon's teammate Scott Dixon was runner-up – 6.4993 seconds behind. Reigning IndyCar Series champion Sam Hornish Jr., driving the No. 6 Team Penske Dallara/Honda/Firestone, finished third for the second year in a row. Delphi Panther Racing's Vitor Meira was fourth, followed by Andretti Green Racing's Tony Kanaan and Vision Racing's Ed Carpenter.
Dario Franchitti, who started third in the No. 27 Canadian Club car for Andretti Green Racing finished seventh, followed by Vision Racing's Tomas Scheckter and Team Penske's Helio Castroneves. Buddy Rice, making his first start for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing, rounded out the top 10.
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