"As Danica Patrick and Sam Hornish Jr. lay crashed in front of me in Turn 1 at Iowa Speedway, I didn't even think about having Hornish in the tri-fecta. I was too pissed at Vitor Meira for not keeping his pace on the restart, bunching the cars up and creating the crash that I didn't think about the board. I had yelled "This is ####!" audibly over the sound of the engines as they came toward us to take the green because I could see an accident was likely imminent before it happened.
There were some great IRL fans sitting next to me in "standing room only" seating (oxymoron). We discussed 1) my theory that the poor restart by Meira created the situation, 2) others (including the announcers) perceptions that Danica failed to come up to speed while running third, and 3) another fan's perception that Carpenter crowded Danica and she swerved back at him on purpose to create space but accidentally hit him starting the wreck . It was pure racing discussion and speculation there for a several minutes during the caution among racing fans at the track. It was awesome! "
"It is at least partially her fault. I initially chalked this incident up to her notoriously poor restarts, but after hearing Sam Hornish, it sounds like that part of it was Vitor (Meira) break checking Marco which forced Danica to pull up slightly and allowed the other three cars to get around her. So that part is not her fault. However, once she was in that position, she was very indecisive and was wobbling back and forth before finally making contact with Carpenter."
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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