INDIANAPOLIS – Marco
Andretti stamped himself as the favorite for the pole position when qualifying
gets under way today for the Indianapolis 500.
The third-generation
driver – grandson of Mario and son of Michael – posted the fastest speed of the
month with a lap at 227.540 mph during the heat of Friday’s practice session.
That lap is slightly faster than last year's pole speed when Alex Tagliani
averaged 227.472 on his four-lap run.
“Why not try to go for
the pole,” Andretti asked. “I’ve been working hard on the consistency for the
four laps.”
Before his fastest lap,
Andretti had a lap of 227.320 mph.
Andretti’s previous best
start was seventh in 2008. An Andretti hasn’t been on the pole since Mario took
the top spot in 1987 – about two months after Marco was born.
“(Winning the pole)
would mean the world to me,” Andretti said. “I showed up this month to win the
race, 100 percent. I still believe I could do it from 33rd, but if
we could do it from first, it would be fantastic.”
Team Penske teammates
Ryan Briscoe (226.835 mph) and Helio Castroneves (226.716 mph) were second and
third, respectively, on the speed chart.
“(More speed) is in the
car,” said Briscoe. “I think we’re up there, but I think Andretti’s team is
heavy favorites for the pole and the race.”
Qualifying begins at 11
a.m. Eastern today, with 24 of the 33 spots being contested. The top nine
qualifiers as of 4 p.m. enter a shootout to determine the pole winner.
The Andretti Autosport
team looks poised to snag the lion’s share of shootout spots as three other
Andretti drivers were in the top seven on Friday – Ryan Hunter-Reay (fourth
fastest, 226.400 mph), James
Hinchcliffe (sixth, 225.974 mph) and the
surprising Ana Beatriz (seventh, 225.653 mph).
Beatriz, one of three
women entered in this year’s 500, is a part-time driver with Andretti in the
Izod IndyCar Series.
“Everybody is helping
each other, so I’m pretty confident,” she said.
The top four speeds were
turned in by Chevrolet-powered cars. Scott Dixon had the top Honda at 226.224
mph.
Been
there, don’t want to do that:
Rick Mears and Jimmy Vasser were asked if they’d like to take a spin in the new
Indy cars. Each is satisfied to keep their driving uniforms in the closet.
“No, I haven’t (driven
the new car), and I'm not going to, but my opinion is it's great. I've had all
the fun I can handle,” said four-time winner Mears, who also sat on the pole a
record six times.
Vasser, who had eight
Indianapolis starts, echoed those thoughts.
“I don't think (the
desire to drive) ever goes away,” he said. “But my racing days are behind me. I
realize that.”
Start
me up: Angie Hicks,
founder of Angie’s List, was the honorary starter. Appropriately, Bryan
Clauson, which is sponsored by Angie’s List, was the first car out.
Dragon,
Lotus at the bottom:
The two remaining Lotus drivers – Jean Alesi and Simona de Silvestro – and the
two former Lotus drivers – Sebastien Bourdais and Katherine Legge (now with
Chevrolet) – had the bottom four practice speeds on Friday.
Photo credit: Bret Kelley / Indianapolis Motor Speedway
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