Sears Point INDY - Play By Play Via Tweet By Tweet

Pit lane and the grid at the start of the INDY Grand Prix of Sonoma at Infineon Raceway, Sears Point. Image Credit: Vision Racing

Sears Point INDY - Play By Play Via Tweet By Tweet

The Indy Grand Prix Sonoma represents the last road/street course on the IndyCar Series schedule for the 2009 season, so if any of the Transition Players (drivers and/or teams merged into the IRL from the ChampCar World Series in 2008) wish to make a mark in their specialty ... this is the place.

Nelson Philippe as he sits stalled on the track in his Conquest Dallara before EJ Viso (HVM) and Will Power (Penske Racing) crest the hill. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2009)

Unfortunately, the biggest star who transitioned from the ChampCar World Series last year got seriously hurt in a crash yesterday with Nelson Philippe after Nelson's car had stalled in the middle of the track just over a blind rise. Philippe was first brushed by EJ Viso, then "T-Boned" by Power (all three drivers are Transition Players). Without the accident, Transition Players would have fielded their largest contingent of drivers in the grid this year (save the INDY 500 with 10) with a total of 9 of 24 total cars.

The initial 24-car field is now down to 22 entrants as both Will Power (Penske) and Nelson Philippe (Conquest) have been sidelined by the practice accident that left them with broken vertebrae and a fractured leg respectively.

Will Power's Penske on the hook with Will Power, himself, on a stretcher with injuries inside the ambulance after his collision with the Conquest Dallara of Nelson Philippe. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2009)

Starting Grid (** denotes Transition Player)

Pos  Driver             Team                 Time
1.  Dario Franchitti   Ganassi              1m16.7987s
2.  Ryan Briscoe       Penske               1m16.8485s
3.  Helio Castroneves  Penske               1m16.8702s
4.  Marco Andretti     Andretti Green       1m17.0524s
5.  Hideki Mutoh       Andretti Green       1m17.2055s
6.  Graham Rahal       Newman/Haas/Lanigan  1m17.3885s**
7.  Tony Kanaan        Andretti Green       1m16.9900s
8.  Franck Montagny    Andretti Green       1m17.0840s**
9.  Mike Conway        Dreyer & Reinbold    1m17.0895s
10.  Scott Dixon        Ganassi              1m17.2247s
11.  Danica Patrick     Andretti Green       1m17.6145s
12.  Dan Wheldon        Panther              1m17.6782s
13.  EJ Viso            HVM                  1m17.9180s**
14.  Mario Moraes       KV                   1m17.4730s**
15.  Robert Doornbos    HVM                  1m18.1095s**
16.  Ryan Hunter-Reay   Foyt                 1m17.6401s
17.  Oriol Servia       Newman/Haas/Lanigan  1m18.1409s**
18.  Raphael Matos      Luczo Dragon         1m17.6552s
19.  Justin Wilson      Coyne                1m18.3353s**
20.  Richard Antinucci  3G                   1m17.7500s
21.  Ed Carpenter       Vision               1m18.2413s
22.  Milka Duno         Dreyer & Reinbold    1m23.6185s


Infineon Raceway - Located just 30 minutes north of the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, the 1,600-acre facility serves as the gateway to the beautiful Sonoma Wine Country. Photo Image Credit: Infineon Raceway (2005)

This excerpted and edited from Twitter, IndyCar Live Timing & Scoring, and various digital resources -

VisionRacingRT @VersusIndyCar: The six on boards cameras are going to be Helio, Servia, Franchitti, Kanaan, Hunter-Reay, and Justin Wilson #indycar

VisionRacing#IndyCar drivers are doing a lap @InfineonRaceway in a trolley car. No joke. Not letting them actually drive it though. That's a good thing.

MyNameIsIRLAs a former resident of The City I have to inform Robbie Floyd that those are not "trolleys". Those are "cable cars". Google it if you must.

14:38:41 GMT-0700 Lap 0: Drivers to their cars.

IndyCarSeriesThe Silent Pagoda*: The Pagoda Society’s Live Colloquium: Aye aye, Lindy. We’re a go. .. http://bit.ly/19JpMi

kvracingRace is about to start in 15 mins. Watch all 75laps live on Versus.

pressdogJon keeps saying "passing zone" in connection to this track. Drug tests may be in order.

kvracinghttp://twitpic.com/f1f33 - Moraes talking to Jack Arute from Versus before the race

VisionRacingNew photos from the weekend up at www.facebook.com/visionracing.

pressdogLive timing and scoring. Recliner. HD wonder. Anchor Liberty Ale. Twitter stream. Maxoderm commercials. Let's light this candle.

GREEN! GREEN! GREEN!

kvracingGreen flag racing here at Sonoma. Dixon spun on turn 2 and caused all the cars behind to via off into dirt to avoid

Full Course YELLOW!

Major crash on turn #2 started with Graham Rahal ... everyone checks up and many cars collect each other. EJ Viso flys over Tony Kanaan.

kvracingMoraes had to avoid accident by running off into dirt but no damage to car

14:55:03 GMT-0700 Lap 1: Danica Patrick may have some suspension damage.

luczodragonCrazy crash at start, we move up 6 spots to 12, as it collected several cars. Could get more when they open pits

TeamIndyChatExciting beginning to the race. Looks like a demolition derby @InfineonRaceway #IndyCar

14:58:36 GMT-0700 Lap 3: Tony Kanaan is getting a new nose cone.

PlanetIrldotcomI blame @paultracy3 for that ;)

MyNameIsIRLAs messed up as that start was, there was some amazing driving buy Servia and Hunter-Reay. Just noting that in case we don't see them again.

Pat Caporali- Media & Public Relations Director, Tweeting - "Nice of them to put a big screen in view of our pit." Image Credit: Vision Racing (2009)

GREEN! GREEN! GREEN!

Franchitti takes the lead with a pair of Penske's behind him, Briscoe, Castroneves, Mutoh, Weldon, and Doornbos round out the top six.

MyNameIsIRL5 laps in and Milka is in 14th. Shoulda picked her int the TrackSide Online fantasy league.

luczodragonDixon was in middle of the opening lap wreck. Some big names impacteð

Justin Wilson ducks into the pits and employs an alternate strategy ... takes on REDS.

FuriousWedgeput a camera on Wilson please he's devouring the field!

VisionRacingCrAZY start to #Indycar race. Ed drove smart and is now P11!

15:05:49 GMT-0700 Lap 8: Dario Franchitti is maintaing a nice lead, but Briscoe isn't letting him get away yet.

Transition Players EJ Viso (HVM), Graham Rahal (NHLR), and Frank Montagny (AGR) are currently shown as being out of competition - AGR is working top place Frank's car back into the race.

VisionRacingNice of them to put a big screen in view of our pit. http://flic.kr/p/6SeK33

IndyCarNationSome specifics for everyone...The race is 75 laps/175 miles..,The overtake assist button may be used 15 times for a duration of 15 seconds

pressdoglock step in this race is like a glacier ... you cannot stop it from showing up.

IndyCarPRLap 10: #10 Franchitti leads #6 Briscoe by .6896 of a second.

15:12:14 GMT-0700 Lap 13: Mario Moraes got by Dan Wheldon for P5.

Ryan Hunter-Reay is tight on Bobby-D's #33 NHLR machine.

VisionRacing#indycar race is 75 laps/175 miles under beautiful blue skies. Overtake assist (push to pass) button will work 15x for 15 seconds each.

MyNameIsIRLRT @HVMracing: "13 car cannot be repaired in time to return to the race." Who else wants EJ to grab a snake and terrorize Arute some more?

indy44Why can't the others drive smart like Wheldon,too many Banzai moves lately

IndyCar101Looks like Briscoe is closing the gap on Franchitti.

15:15:22 GMT-0700 Lap 15: Dario Franchitti is looking good in the lead, but Briscoe is hanging close.

VisionRacingAlmost just like watching at home. http://flic.kr/p/6SeVq7

Of the eight cars that were involved in the first lap crash ... only Viso and Rahal are sidelined.

VisionRacingEd reports roll bar adjustment not making a difference. Team will try to help with tire pressure adjustments. Pitting in 5 laps.

Carpenter in the Vision pits on first stop - Stop complete...Go Ed, Go! Image Credit: Vision Racing (2009)

15:21:34 GMT-0700 Lap 20: Mario Moraes is looking strong as he slowly closes on Hideki Mutoh.

15:25:17 GMT-0700 Lap 22: Ryan Hunter-Reay is closing on Robert Doornbos.
END OF UPDATES

Normally, in this type of weblog posting activity, the entries from Twitter and other digital reference resources would continue to be read, reviewed for content, copied, then added to the Blogspot weblog account portal (... notes from The EDJE).

Unfortunately, this particular race was being written about, and information was being gathered, while traveling in a pristine, white '95 Ford F-250XLT, with a matching, form-fitting white shell, with passengers riding high above the traffic, from Coachella Valley to a conference on the economy and planning for the upcoming economic trend of Government induced inflation. The problem arose where the laptop (outfitted with a Verizon USB port cellphone technology internet access device) ran out of battery power and the realtime information gathering had to stop - "END OF UPDATES".

This weblog posting was a New Media experiment that was working beautifully until the power became depleted. Inside the extended cab of this Ford truck was a fully charged DieHard Portable Power 950 Jump-starter/DC and USB Power Source and that would have been useful, probably to the end of the race, and thus allowing the experiment to come to a successful completion ... IF we had a power inverter with a cigarette-lighter plug port for power, or had purchased the DieHard Portable Power 1150 instead.
DieHard Portable Power 1150 Jump-Starter/AC-DC Power Source - Emergency power at home or on the road! Portable Power's 1150 Peak Amps jump starts 12V vehicles and powers 12V DC lights, and other devices. Includes: Two 12 Volt DC power outlets to provide up to 50 hours of DC power for accessories and two, built-in lights. Inflate/deflate air mattresses, with the built-in air inflator/deflator. Pump up car tires and sports balls with built-in 150 PSI air compressor. Two AC outlets power up to 400 watts of household power for small electronic appliances/devices. With the use of the fast 1000mA wall charger, the internal circuitry recharges the internal 22Ah DieHard® AGM battery then switches to float-mode monitoring so full power is available when you need it! Includes battery cables, pressure gauge, hoses and adapters, male-to-male accessory plug, door for battery replacement. 5V USB port. Caption & Image Credit: SEARS

We, at The EDJE, are buying one of these bad puppies today! In the immortal words of Tim Allen, as he expressed his joy of power tools in the TV series, Home Improvement ... Arrr, Arrr, Arrrrrrrrrrrr!

This excerpted and edited from Motorsport.com -

Dario Franchitti (Target Chip Ganassi Racing) with Ryan Briscoe (Penske Racing) in tow at Infineon Raceway, Sears Point. Image Credit: autosport.com (2009)

Franchitti leads flag-to-flag for Sonoma win
By Tony DiZinno - Motorsport.com - Date: 2009-08-23

The points lead changed once again as Dario Franchitti led flag-to-flag from pole position en route to his fourth victory of the IndyCar Series season. The Target Chip Ganassi Racing driver avenged his prior struggles on the road courses and led home Ryan Briscoe of Team Penske in Sunday's race at Sonoma, Calif.'s Infineon Raceway.

"Track position was critical today," Franchitti said. "I did what I had to do to get out front. We stuck to our pit strategy. There were a couple hairy moments out there but this is critical and crucial for the championship."

Speaking of said championship chase between Franchitti, Briscoe, and Scott Dixon, Franchitti gained 13 points to within four markers of Briscoe for the series lead. If a coin had three sides it would be an appropriate description of this year's title chase, the championship lead changing hands for the 13th time in 14 races.

Briscoe, for his part, admitted frustration at his seventh runner-up finish of the season and said winning at least one of the final three races is crucial to capturing the crown.

"If we're going to win this championship, I'm going to have to win one of the last three," he said. "Dario got maximum points today, he's right there and Dixon stumbled. Coming in second gets old a little bit, but I know we're up there."

Dixon was a non-factor in today's race after a poor starting position and being involved in accidents at both the start and finish of the race. He was credited with a 13th-place finish.

From 12th on the grid Dixon was among those bottled up in a first lap fracas, and after recovering to eighth by the final lap he was punted by Marco Andretti and fell to 14th. He now drops 20 points behind Briscoe, third in the title chase. Andretti was penalized shortly after the checkered flag to behind Dixon for causing avoidable contact.

"We made a few passes on quite a few people, and he got into the back of me and spun me around," Dixon described the afternoon. "He came up after and apologized though, he said he didn't mean to do it. As far as our strategy, we tried to catch a yellow to vault up, but we ended up in the same position."
----
The chaos also vaulted a number of drivers with poor starting positions forward, chief among them the returning Mario Moraes of KV Racing, as well as Dan Wheldon, Mike Conway, Hideki Mutoh.
----
The British rookie restarted fifth but passed both the fading Mutoh and Moraes to get onto the podium. Conway eclipsed his personal best result of sixth set earlier this year at Watkins Glen to earn Dreyer & Reinbold Racing's first podium finish since Briscoe achieved the feat at "The Glen" in 2006.
----
For his part, Moraes was finally able to turn his blistering speed this season into a result. The best career finish for the 20-year-old Brazilian came after he missed Mid-Ohio because his father passed away. Moraes' previous best result was seventh at Watkins Glen last year, and his best this season was ninth at Milwaukee.
----
Mutoh completed the top five, tops in the Andretti Green Racing five-car camp. His fifth place was his second consecutive, as he also achieved the result last race at Mid-Ohio.

The rest of the top ten was Oriol Servia in his second start for Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing, Wilson, Kanaan, Matos and Robert Doornbos, in his second go this year for HVM Racing.

Wilson had an eventful race, starting 22nd and last in the field after a last-minute switch to start on Firestone's primary tire, the blacks. He had three sets of new alternates, the reds, available for use and worked them to his advantage. Passing cars on the notoriously difficult to pass circuit was Wilson's M.O. all day.

It almost didn't end as well as it did. Wilson dived down to Servia's inside at turn 11 only to lock up and spin out. He narrowly missed hitting Mutoh in the process, but he didn't stall and recovered as he lit up the tires.
----
Others of note -- Andretti came home 11th but was penalized for his role in the Dixon accident, Antinucci ran tantalizingly close to the top ten for the underfunded Curb/Agajanian Team 3G effort but finished 15th, and last car running was unsurprisingly Milka Duno in 17th, who added only to the race as a moving chicane, nothing more.

Montagny, making his IndyCar Series debut in the fifth AGR car, struggled despite an eighth place starting position. He collided with Antinucci at one point and that set him off the road with suspension damage.
----
Overall it was a landmark day for Franchitti. He ended a string of poor results, by his and the team's lofty standards, on permanent road courses. He hadn't finished better than third on such a circuit this season.

By leading all 75 laps, Franchitti accomplished the feat for the first time since his teammate Scott Dixon did in a rain-shortened, 206-lap race at Richmond in 2003. It is his 22nd win in his open-wheel (CART and IndyCar combined) career, tying him with Castroneves and Emerson Fittipaldi for 14th all-time.

Only the top four have a mathematical shot at the title but it is realistically three. There is no rest for the weary as the final stretch of ovals begins Saturday night at the Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, Ill. [September 19, 2009 at Motegi, Japan and the season finale on October 10, 2009 at Homestead, Florida]
Reference Here>>

Dario Franchitti capped a perfect weekend at Infineon Raceway on Sunday with a wire-to-wire victory in the Indy Grand Prix of Sonoma. Franchitti (Target Chip Ganassi Racing), who qualified on the pole, took the lead at the drop of the green flag and never looked back to post his first-ever win at Infineon Raceway. It was the first wire-to-wire win in the IndyCar® Series since Richmond in 2003. Image Credit: Infineon Raceway (2009)

How they fared (** denotes Transition Player)

Pos  Driver             Team                      Time/Gap
1.  Dario Franchitti   Ganassi              1h49m23.0073s
2.  Ryan Briscoe       Penske                  +  0.2488s
3.  Mike Conway        Dreyer & Reinbold       +  0.8293s
4.  Mario Moraes       KV                      +  3.6171s**
5.  Hideki Mutoh       Andretti Green          +  5.4536s
6.  Oriol Servia       Newman/Haas/Lanigan     +  6.3801s**
7.  Justin Wilson      Coyne                   +  6.6997s**
8.  Tony Kanaan        Andretti Green          +  7.1808s
9.  Raphael Matos      Luczo Dragon            +  8.5936s
10.  Robert Doornbos    HVM                     + 10.8175s**
11.  Ed Carpenter       Vision                  + 11.3688s
12.  Dan Wheldon        Panther                 + 12.4000s
13.  Scott Dixon        Ganassi                 + 13.8968s
14.  Marco Andretti     Andretti Green          + 14.8978s
15.  Richard Antinucci  3G                      + 19.0650s
16.  Danica Patrick     Andretti Green          +    1 lap
17.  Milka Duno         Dreyer & Reinbold       +   4 laps

Retirements:

Helio Castroneves  Penske                  66 laps
Ryan Hunter-Reay   Foyt                    65 laps
Franck Montagny    Andretti Green          57 laps**
Graham Rahal       Newman/Haas/Lanigan     30 laps**
Ernesto Viso       HVM                     0 laps**
NOTE: Transition Players Will Power driving for Penske Racing and Nelson Philippe driving for Conquest Racing were not able to fill the grid due to injuries from a crash during the warm-up session on Saturday.

Photo Album From Infineon Raceway at Sears Point>>

... notes from The EDJE

Source URL: http://allnewfordcar.blogspot.com/search/label/Twitter
Visit All New Ford Car for Daily Updated Hairstyles Collection

Mid-Ohio 2009, IRL Race #13 - Play By Play Via Tweet By Tweet

Mid-Ohio track map adorns the center of the steering wheel of Vision Racing's Ed Carpenter. The push to pass button on Ed's steering wheel is the yellow button to the right, just above the radio button. Image Credit: Vision Racing

Mid-Ohio 2009, IRL Race #13 - Play By Play Via Tweet By Tweet

Mid-Ohio is one of the crown jewels of American open-wheel racing road courses and it is good to see this venue to continue to be on the schedule. After an exciting race on the oval in Kentucky, last week - that featured an element of driver performance control adapted from ChampCar known as "push-to-pass" - Mid-Ohio will have the element of the option Red tires (another ChampCar innovation) added to the mix.

Justin Wilson, Dale Coyne Racing, seems poised to deliver another milestone win for team owner, Dale Coyne, as he did at Watkins Glen four weeks ago (boy, was it that long ago?). In the Firestone Fast Six - top six positions decided during qualifications, Justin will be lining up along side Peak Performance Pole winner, Penske Racing'sRyan Briscoe, just as he had at Watkins Glen.

Justin Wilson, Dale Coyne Racing goes for win #2 for the season starting P@ in row #1. Image Credit: Andy Sallee (2009)

The rest of the starting grid is as follows (** denotes Transition Player):

Pos Driver Team Time
1. Ryan Briscoe Penske 1m06.6814s
2. Justin Wilson Coyne 1m06.7007s**
3. Scott Dixon Ganassi 1m07.0238s
4. Graham Rahal Newman/Haas/Lanigan 1m07.0640s**
5. Helio Castroneves Penske 1m07.1809s
6. Dario Franchitti Ganassi 1m07.3791s
7. Ryan Hunter-Reay Foyt 1m07.2364s
8. Tony Kanaan Andretti Green 1m07.5083s
9. EJ Viso HVM 1m07.5712s**
10. Paul Tracy KV 1m07.6129s**
11. Hideki Mutoh Andretti Green 1m07.6699s
12. Danica Patrick Andretti Green 1m07.7440s
13. Marco Andretti Andretti Green 1m08.1779s
14. Oriol Servia Newman/Haas/Lanigan 1m08.4314s**
15. Raphael Matos Luczo Dragon 1m08.2311s
16. Mike Conway Dreyer & Reinbold 1m08.5495s
17. Dan Wheldon Panther 1m08.8176s
18. Robert Doornbos HVM 1m08.5734s**
19. Richard Antinucci 3G 1m08.8516s
20. Milka Duno Dreyer & Reinbold 1m14.5371s
21. Ed Carpenter Vision 1m09.7141s
(ht: autosport.com)

This race will have only 21 competitors, five of which are drivers/teams from the former ChampCar World Series that merged into the IRL to compete for the IndyCar Series championship last year.

Robert Doornbos, HVM Racing - Image Credit: Andy Sallee (2009)

Oriol Servia returns to open-wheel racing, replacing Robert Doornbos at NHLR - Image Credit: Andy Sallee (2009)

A couple of seat and team changes have happened since the last race - Dutchman Robert Doornbos has left Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing to take a seat with his former CCWS team, joining EJ Viso at HVM Racing, and to be replaced by Spainaird Oriol Servia. Mario Moraes is attending to a family tragedy with the passing of his father in Brazil, so he will be replaced by Paul Tracy in the KV Racing Technology Dallara for this weekend road course event.

View from the Mid-Ohio media center tower just above the Vision Racing pits, flag tower and Start/Finish line. Image Credit: Vision Racing

This excerpted and edited from Twitter, IndyCat.Com Timing & Scoring, and various resources-

VisionRacing@pressdog Words of the late, great Alan B. Shepard, American's first in space. Nice. And indeed, let's light this candle!

13:05:47 GMT-0400 Next up: Honda Indy 200 from Mid-Ohio at 1:45 p.m. (ET).

93wibc'Push to Pass' Unlikely to Make Impact at Mid-Ohio: IndyCar drivers think it will probably take more than the pu.. http://bit.ly/JU9Rk

Justin Wilson will see about that (push-to-pass)!

pressdogizod commercial number 1 of an estimated 8393.

MyNameIsIRLAnd by my count that is the 10,000th airing of the IZOD commercial. * blows kazoo *

FuriousWedgeesses are freakin packed for ICS. gotta love that the track blowers are just tractors with blowers strapped on
----
13:20:15 GMT-0400 Driver Introductions have started.
13:29:16 GMT-0400 Driver Introductions are done. Invocation is up next at 1:36 p.m. (ET).

MyNameIsIRLWas that footage of Graham as an infant? If so, why was he dressed like a girl? Should we start calling him Grahamica?

TheEDJE@MyNameIsIRL - Come on, Grammy is kinda' cute! #irl #ics #indycar
----
13:36:42 GMT-0400 Invocation and the National Anthem is happening now.

pressdogI LOVE the VS "flip the script" spots. Give me goose bumps every single time.

13:40:13 GMT-0400 The command for Drivers to their cars has been given.

chunter16Versus is off limits for me now, I'm on the IMS feed.

13:44:12 GMT-0400 Lap 0: All drivers are in their cars and awaiting the command to start engines.

IndyCarNationWelcome to the Tweetcast of the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio.

TeamIndyChatAloha to all IndyCar race fans!

RacingNationWelcome to Mid-Ohio-can Rahal overcome the 'red' cars? Will Milka make herself part of the story? Is RHR a fluke in the top-10? Stay tuned.
----
TeamIndyChatDrivers, start your engines! #IndyCar

VisionRacingWe've kicked the tires and have lit the fires. Time to go #IndyCar racing. Good race all!

13:50:12 GMT-0400 Lap 0: All cars have fired and the field is away for the Hondy Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio

We might not be at an oval track where they are mandatory but spotters are always handy even at a road course. Our Aaron "Dude" Nelson stands with other spotters in turn 4 overlooking "the esses". Image Credit: Vision Racing

IndyCarNation#27 Mutoh and #23 Duno are using scuffed reds.

13:53:03 GMT-0400 Lap 0: The Green Flag will be waved next time by.

VisionRacingRT @IndyCarNation: Today’s race is 85 laps/191.93 miles. • The green flag will be shown the third-time by the flag stand on the backstretch.

RacingNationFor you newer IndyCar fans, Teo Fabi's win at Mid-Ohio in 1989 was Porsche's lone win in IndyCar, loved that car. #IndyCar

Green Green Green!

indy44Nice start

13:57:25 GMT-0400 Lap 1: TK has went of course in T2 but comes back on track at the end of the field.

indy44Tk playing in the sandbox doh

13:58:46 GMT-0400 Lap 2: Wilson just used the over take button to try and get a run on Briscoe but the attempt failed.

TheSpeedgeekOh, and for the recird, Milka is listed as 8.6 seconds behind the leader after 1 lap.

luczodragonCars are finding track slippery
----
IndyCarPRLap 5: #6 Briscoe leads #18 Wilson by .4498 of a second.

VisionRacingJuston Wilson gets people on their feet and takes the lead form a red car. #Indycar

pressdogwilson. CLEAR

pressdogbuh bye, field. Wilson super sonic

luczodragonRafa gets by Marco to 14

RacingNationKanaan must really be looking forward to Homestead this year. Wow, what an ugly year. Could it be the APEXBRASIL curse? #Indycar

14:04:15 GMT-0400 Lap 7: After making the pass for the lead Wilson has taken off and leads Briscose by almost 2 seconds.

MyNameIsIRLJustin Wilson decides to "flip the script", takes the lead.

VisionRacingEd moves into P17 as some cars come in for wing adjustments. Ed is faster than three cars ahead of him. He's working on them.

IndyCarPRLap 7: #24 Conway, #98 Antinucci and #11 Kanaan on pit road for four tires and fuel. #24 Conway and #98 Antinucci take red tires.

14:07:50 GMT-0400 Lap 10: Wilson has extended his lead to over 4 seconds now. He is using the Alternate Firestones to his advantage.

VisionRacingTop 10 is Justin Wilson (who seems to be checking out!) Briscoe Dixon FRanchitti Rahal Helio RHR Viso PT Mutoh
----
luczodragonCar getting some great air time. Marines! FRS

14:11:04 GMT-0400 Lap 13: Wilson is catching to up Milka and getting ready to lap her.

chunter16Classic Danica to Milka: "It's not my fault you're slow!"

luczodragonJust passed Danica now at 12

14:15:03 GMT-0400 Lap 16: Milka has just pitted. This is her first.

VisionRacing10 laps until @edcarpenter20 brings the no.20 Menards car in to the pits for fuel and tires. #Indycar

IndyCarPRLap 15: #18 Wilson leads #6 Briscoe by 5.3373 seconds.

VisionRacingwe hear that Milka Dunno left pits with a tire gun still attached to the wheel.... #Indycar

14:17:13 GMT-0400 Lap 18: Justin Wilson has extended his lead to over 5.25 seconds.

VisionRacingP2P for the newbies out there is the push to pass button that gives drivers a little more "get up and go". #indycar

FuriousWedgenot sure if its on tv but Ed is all over Doornbos back that seems backwards

TheEDJE@FuriousWedge - No they are just going through the field ... they are up to Tracy #irl #ics #indycar

VisionRacing6.5 second lead for Justin Wilson at Mid-Ohio. Always fun rooting for an underdog isn't it? #Indycar

14:20:34 GMT-0400 Lap 21: The teams are starting to set out for the first pit stops.
----
14:24:46 GMT-0400 Lap 24: Danica pits for her first stop and put in 22 gallons of Ethanol and a new set of Firestone Primaries. Servia put on alternates - Reds!

IndyCarPRLap 24: #18 Wilson leads #6 Briscoe by 7.3964 seconds. #7 Patrick on pit lane for four black tires and fuel.

IndyCarNationLap 25: #18 Wilson leads #6 Briscoe by 7.5698 seconds

VisionRacingPitting this lap. I LOVE pit stops! such a rush to watch. #Indycar

14:27:18 GMT-0400 Lap 27: The window to pit for the leaders has opened. We should be seeing him pit in the new few laps.

Justin Wilson IN - Fuel and out on Blacks! 14:28:53 GMT-0400 Lap 28: Wilson pits for his first stop. He is taking on 22 gallons of Ethanol and new Firestone Primaries tires.

MyNameIsIRLPaul Tracy is all up on Viso for 8th. This is gonna be awesome...and we cut away???

VisionRacingGood pitstop by the no.20 Menards crew. We'll have to wait for everyone to cycle through to see how that helps us. Good out laps Ed.

14:30:36 GMT-0400 Lap 29: PT leaves a nice burn out when he exits the pits.

14:31:40 GMT-0400 Lap 30: Dixon stays out due to getting great fuel milage by staying behind Briscoe for the first stint.

Marco26WebEJ pits, giving Marco a little more clean air. MA pits a lap later from P6

Changes behind Wilson on the pitstops - 14:33:11 GMT-0400 Lap 31: Wilson regains the lead from Dixon but Dixon comes out ahead of Brisoce and takes over P2.

luczodragonDixon was only car to beat us (Matos) on fuel

FuriousWedgePT just squeezed past Matos in esses

RacingNationMilka's best lap was 1:14.2, nxt was Wheldon 1:11.3, then Doornbos 1:10.7, Wilson's fastest lap, 1:09.8, best lap overall, Briscoe 1:09.4

luczodragonCar feels loose, getting tires up to temp

14:35:37 GMT-0400 Lap 33: Wilson is trying to regain his 7 second lead that he had on Briscoe but this time on Dixon. Wilson leads by a little over one second.

IndyCarNationLap 35: Green flag stops complete, #18 Wilson leads #9 Dixon by .3317 seconds.

14:38:51 GMT-0400 Lap 36: The leaders are coming up on the lappd machines of Milka Dunno.

14:39:21 GMT-0400 Lap 36: With Milka's help Dixon takes the lead from Wilson.

VisionRacingOn next stop Vision crew will put red Firestone tires on the no.20 Menards car. Thanks to Milka, Dixon takes lead from Wilson.

luczodragonEngineers like the times we're posting on the blacks
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14:41:38 GMT-0400 Lap 38: Dixon is taking off. His car is currently working better on the Firestone Primaries than Wilson's car is.

Marco26WebLap 38 - MA P8. The #26 struggling on speed on laps 36/37. Tracy and Matos right in the mirrors. Gap to RHR 13.8. Gap to lead 30.6

Full Course YELLOW - Helio Castroneves off ... then back off.

14:43:30 GMT-0400 Lap 40: Yellow for Helio Castroneves off course in T9.

VisionRacing@Ryanhunterreay picks up a spot and is P6 after Helio goes off course for a sec.

pressdogThe IRL really needs to work on their full-course local yellow. Need to be more F1-ish -- full course is very rare.

chunter16@pressdog All I see now is the bottom of a helicopter. I'm guessing it was a little "off" with no debris.

MyNameIsIRLRobbie keeps talking about a "rhythm section". Is there a VERSUS band I don't know about?

14:45:45 GMT-0400 Lap 41: Pits are open.

luczodragonRafa up to 8th with Marco and Helio pitting

14:48:10 GMT-0400 Lap 42: Green flag this time by.

Green, Green, Green!

TheSpeedgeekHow many restarts have we missed this year because of the crutch of "side-by-side"?

Graham Rahal passes Dario Franchitti for P4!

TheEDJEDanica Patrick goes off course with the help of Mike Conway - off of the main straight in turn 4. #irl #ics #indycar

Full Course YELLOW!

indy44Graham does a magically delicious move on Dario,Danica with a mouthful of sand,Conway prepare for postrace headslap!
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FollowMidOhioDixon (1), Wilson (2), Briscoe (3) with 38 laps to go....Under Caution

Vision Racing's team owner, Tony George watches timing and scoring and calculates the strategy. Vision Racing

14:58:17 GMT-0400 Lap 48: Green Flag!

IndyCarPRLap 43: GREEN. #9 Dixon leads the field into Turn 1. #02 Rahal passes #10 Franchitti for fourth in Turn 4.

pressdogconway got a drive through penalty. milka -7 seconds off the leader's pace. dude.

14:59:00 GMT-0400 Lap 48: Mike Conway gets a drive thru penalty for avoidable contact with Danica Patrick.

VisionRacingWe'll need a few more yellows to help with our fuel strategy and make it the rest of the way to the checkered.
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pressdogI tell ya, it's all about the Benjamen's [money] with the IHJ re: who gets parked. At least Benjamen's have a lot to do with it.

15:03:22 GMT-0400 Lap 52: Dixon is in control of the this race now and looks to be the one to beat.

IndyCarNationLap 53: #9 Dixon leads #18 Wilson by 2.5584 seconds

chunter16Looks like Dixon's lap is about half second faster than Wilson's.

IndyCarPRLap 55: #9 Dixon leads #18 Wilson by 3.8459 seconds.

MyNameIsIRLSuddenly everyone on twitter is now unabashedly calling Conway "Conweasel". He's only marginally more popular than Milka right now.

TheSpeedgeek@mynameisirl Hey, people could go with "Con-weezie", in a Sanford and Son shout-out.

15:10:12 GMT-0400 Lap 58: Dixon and Wilson have both just set their best laps of the race.
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MyNameIsIRLMutoh is in 7th? When...how.. did this happen?

VisionRacingThat's it for Vision Racing pitstops as long as there is a caution before the checkered flag. #IndyCar

TheSpeedgeekI have been hyp-mo-tized by EJ's radio antenna on his on-board.

VisionRacingThe crew did NOT change tires. Ed is still on Firestone Reds and will try to make it to the checkered on them. #Indycar

15:14:04 GMT-0400 Lap 61: Milka Duno has come into the pits and called it again.

IndyCarPRLap 62: #18 Wilson on pit lane for four red tires and fuel. Car was very slow on pit entry and stalls on exit.

Justin Wilson STALLS in the pits - Lost a bunch of time - 30 plus seconds, may have run out of fuel! A little more than 20 laps to go.

chunter16Pits for everybody, Ganassi make it look easy. #irl

15:16:06 GMT-0400 Lap 63: With Wilsons problems in the pit's it's now Dixons race to lose.

chunter16Wilson disappeared from T&S and was not shown in race control. So much for Dale Coyne repeat.

VisionRacingThe boss watches timing and scoring and calculates the strategy. http://flic.kr/p/6NfF4Q

VisionRacing20 laps left at Mid-Ohio. How about a caution to help mix things up a but? It's about that time, right?

RacingNationWell, with Wilson's 30 sec plus pit stop, the Iceman Dixon is in control, only a Honda engineer with a self-destruct button can stop Dixon.
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MyNameIsIRLHunter-Reay and Mutoh appear to be a few 10ths of a second apart, battling for 6th. That might be kinda nice to watch Mr Broadcast Director.

IndyCarNationLap 68: #9 Dixon leads #26 Andretti by 10.3302 seconds.

pressdogBig Two ... viewing not enhanced ... wake me when it's over

Graham Rahal running in P5 goes off course - too much rear brake bias - back on course local YELLOW only - Rahal to P8.

RacingNationNice run for RHR and the Foyt crew, they're in 5th, been running strong all weekend. They needed it. #Indycar

luczodragonRahal went off track, Tracy got by but Rafa couldnt. Still 9th

MyNameIsIRLLet's cut away from Tracy passing Rahal so we can show something that was taped. They are bound and determined to not show any passes today.

15:27:45 GMT-0400 Lap 73: Dixon is up over 12 seconds over Marco Andretti. Wilson rides along in P13 just behind Helio Castroneves in P12.

IndyCarNationLap 73: #9 Dixon leads #26 Andretti by 12.9744 seconds. #13 Viso pitted for four tires and fuel.

VisionRacing@RyanHunterReay is now in the Top 5 at Mid-Ohio. @BeccyGordon can't twitter here at Mid-Ohio. Mobile twitter dead zone. #Indycar

Marco26WebAs the stops take at least 20 secs we're looking at a drop to at least P10

15:30:55 GMT-0400 Lap 75: With Marco Andretti pitting Dixon's lead is now almost 20 seconds. He can put on the cruise control.

chunter16RT @indy44: Would love to see post race foot in Conway's ass cam

FuriousWedgehaven't seen Conway in a while. has he dropped out?

luczodragon7 laps left and Rafa has 3 of 20 PTP overtakes left

MyNameIsIRLVitor sighting! That's probably the best thing I've seen all day.

FuriousWedgeIts this kind of dominance that makes me wonder what Scott could do racing for Gil.

VisionRacing5 laps left. Not quite as interesting an #Indycar race as last week. Can I get a "Understatement of the race" award for that tweet?

TheEDJE@VisionRacing - Duhhh - After Wilson's miscue, not much fun. #irl #ics #indycar

15:35:56 GMT-0400 Lap 80: With 5 laps to go Dixon's lead is now 23.8 seconds head of P2.

luczodragonBriscoe and Dario in battle for 2nd

15:39:56 GMT-0400 Lap 83: White flag for Scott Dixon in the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio.

Marco26WebWith Danica (12pts) and Dan W (14pts) both scoring low today MA's 28pts halves the gap to DP.

15:41:06 GMT-0400 Lap 84: Scott Dixon Wins the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio!

Congratulations to Scott Dixon in becoming the winningest driver in IRL history, eclipsing Sam Hornish Jr. This is Scott's first win on a road course in over a year!

luczodragonDixon the winner, Briscoe holds of Dario, Hunter-Reay 4th

luczodragonRafa: "great job guys, I drove so hard today."

pressdoggripping

VisionRacingCongrats to Scott Dixon and the Ganassi crew. Thanks for following our twittercast from Mid-Ohio. Safe travels home. #Indycar

MyNameIsIRLAnother exciting Scott Dixon victory is in the books. *rolls eyes *

VisionRacingShout out to @RyanHunterReay for a strong 4th place finish at Mid-Ohio. #Indycar

TheEDJEThe highest placed Transition Driver, Paul Tracy P7, Rahal P8, Servia P11 - Wilson, Bobby D, Viso 13-15 #irl #ics #indycar

... notes from The EDJESource URL: http://allnewfordcar.blogspot.com/search/label/Twitter
Visit All New Ford Car for Daily Updated Hairstyles Collection

Richmond Racing At Night, IRL Style - Tweet By Tweet

Scenes from Richmond - Night racing is the best from the pit of Mike Conway (Ctrl-Click photo to launch trackside video). Caption & Image Credit: Jeff Olsen

Richmond Racing At Night, IRL Style - Tweet By Tweet

This race will be the second race in a row that the Transition Player hopeful will be disappointed. Last week saw only five drivers who merged into the IRL from the ChampCar World Series drive the short oval in Iowa, with dismal results - only Graham Rahal of Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing was running at P11 in the end. The other four drivers, Robert (Bobby D) Doornbos - Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing, Mario Moraes - KV Racing Technology, Justin Wilson - Dale Coyne Racing, and EJ Viso - HVM Racing managed to get on the track, but only Rahal's teammate drove enough laps to gain one point in his charge to become Rookie-Of-The-Year in the IndyCar Series for 2009.

The hat The EDJE will be wearing throughout the race. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2009)

Richmond is another short oval, but instead of being in operation for only three years as the track in Iowa ... Richmond has been a racing venue since 1953 and has seen some of the most fierce racing over the years from NASCAR. The IRL comes to this venue to race at night which at the end, will mark the halfway point in the IndyCar Series 2009 championship season.

Scenes from Richmond - If I had a recliner and a cocktail, I'd never leave. Caption & Image Credit: Jeff Olsen

So we begin the day knowing that Dario Franchitti, the winner of the race last week in Iowa, is on the pole here tonight with the first four places on the grid being (sung to the tune of Ol' McDonald - Dixon, Castroneves, and Briscoe) Ganassi, Ganassi, Penske, Penske - E-I E-I Ohhhhhh! He leads a field of only 20 cars, with 25% of the field filled with Transition Players, lining up to qualify in P5 - Rahal, P7 - Viso, P12 - Doornbos, P15 - Wilson, and P19 - Moraes ... kind of a disappointing spread.

The championship points race at this point in the season for the first five positions as follows - Briscoe - 241 / Franchitti - 2 behind leader / Dixon - 15 behind leader / Castroneves (who missed the first race of the season) - 29 behind leader / Patrick - 52 behind leader.

The only Transition Player to make it into the top ten is Newman/Haas/Lanigan's Graham Rahal who is 9th in the points - 96 behind leader. The other TP's in this race and concieveably can gain points are 14, Wilson - 122 behind leader / 15, Doornbos - 122 behind leader / 16, Moraes - 133 behind leader / 19, Viso - 156 behind leader.

Arguably, the best Transition Player not driving in this, or any race in the predictable future, is Will Power, driving for Penske, who had to give up his ride when Castroneves came back to claim "his seat". The Penske organization ... to their credit, provided a ride for three races that included the month of May in Indianapolis and the INDY 500. Power sits at 17 - 142 points behind leader.

Well, that is the set-up for Richmond, the ninth race of the season ... let the tweeting begin!!!

Dario Franchitti, Target Chip Ganassi Racing gets a check for winning pole ... at this point in the season, he is only 3 points behind the leader. Image Credit: Andy Sallee (2009)

TWEETS & Commentary:

VisionRacingRT @edcarpenter20: just getting ready for the race. it is a great night for a race!

PlanetIrldotcom@indy44 That's where I am usually. No Tv this time

MyNameIsIRL@VisionRacing The new site is very nice. In fact, I just learned I own the same breed of dog as Lauren George. Who knew?

SpeedJournal(Indy)6/27 :: SunTrust Indy Challenge Daily Trackside Report -- June 27- http://tinyurl.com/l8rb4f #autoracing

taglianiHeaded back to Vegas, gonna miss the race coverage, bummer!
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The half of the track that is open is pretty packed. 40 min to green. Image Credit: furiouswedge via Twitpic (2009)

FuriousWedgehttp://twitpic.com/8mjh6 - The half of the track that is open is pretty packed. 40 min to green

pressdogbeer, timing and scoring, note pad, Jenkins just said "markers" .... let's light this candle.

indy44Both laptops on,timing and scoring up,indycar race control standby,ready for the green! Please be smart drivers,patience patience patience!!

the500Join our live chat and follow all the action during tonight's IndyCar race with Race Tracker at http://www.indystar.com/rac....

MyNameIsIRLCan I get a filter on my TV that doesn't show Danica signing "man boobs"? Even P1, huge Fanica that she is, said "that was GROSS!"

DRRIndyCarCell phone battery fully charged - will do our best to keep you updated! Driver introductions over for our guys, now with their crews.
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MyNameIsIRLOK, I need to ask - Did any of the bloggers on site get one of these massages?

TRIBUTE TO MICHAEL JACKSON: Mario Moraes made a wardrobe adjustment to honor Michael Jackson before the SunTrust Indy Challenge, and tweeted to let his fans know what he was doing.

His twitter posting: "Hey guys ! I have a SILVER right hand glove for the race ! hope have a good luck on this ! RIP Michael !" Maraes, who qualified 19th out of the 20 cars in the field, crashed in late practice Friday night and started in the back in the race.

PlanetIrldotcom@MyNameIsIRL If you could hear it over the sound of multiple tanning beds and the leagues of adoring fans.

VisionRacing"Drivers to your cars." Nice evening in Richmond. Sun is starting to set. Crews getting ready for the L+GSYE command under the lights.

20:36:17 GMT-0400 All drivers are in there cars.
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MyNameIsIRLWOW - SunTrust dude did a good job with the "Driver's Start Your Engines!"

20:41:21 GMT-0400 All cars have been fired.

IndyCarPRWelcome to tonight's Tweetcast of the SunTrust Indy Challenge from Richmond International Raceway.

20:41:48 GMT-0400 All cars are away from the grid. Green flag fourth time by.

GREEN, GREEN, GREEN - We're racin' folks! On the shortest track that the IRL faces this season - just may be the shortest track in all of openwheel racing!

kvracingGreen Flag, for 300 laps of racing at Richmond

YELLOW Flag - Jaques Lazier spins by himself in the first lap! Hits wall.

FuriousWedgenot sure what you saw on tv but jacques engine didnt sound right as he passed the line

GREEN, GREEN, GREEN - We're racin' folks - again!

20:50:01 GMT-0400 Lap 8: Back to green flag racing!

TheEDJERahal and Viso - P6 and P7 #irl #ics #indycar

IndyCarPRLap 10: #10 Franchitti leads #9 Dixon by .4835 of a second.
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VisionRacingEd working on moving forward. Currently P13. He has @TonyKanaan in his mirrors. A red car is P1. Does it matter which? Okay Dario.

TheEDJEJaques Lazier interviewed - "It just snapped around on me!" #irl #ics #indycar

chunter16Looks like a good crowd but I don't like those empty seats in the back. #irl

MyNameIsIRLWhen's the last time Jaques Lazier got interviewed on camera? I'm thinking 2005.

YELLOW Flag - Briscoe by himself, puts power down and slides after banking.

DRRIndyCarLap 25: Tomas is 10th, Mike is 16th. The whole field is already getting spread out. Or it was - yellow for Briscoe crash.

20:59:26 GMT-0400 Lap 32: Ryan Briscoe appeared to get loose out of Turn 2, hitting the wall at the exit of the turn.

21:00:51 GMT-0400 Lap 34: Last available lap to pit.

RacingNationWell, looks like it could be one of those nights, attrition is adding up. This will mix up the points. #Indycar
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luczodragonMutoh and Danica stayed out so we will be 6th at restart

GREEN, GREEN, GREEN

kvracingBack to Green Flag racing, lap 39

21:03:11 GMT-0400 Lap 38: Dario Franchitti takes P2 from Danica.

indy44Marco and Graham introduce their tires to each other - Graham wins this one.

DRRIndyCar23 guys watching their stop. Always looking to improve! http://yfrog.com/0y2jioj

kvracingMoraes has moved to 17th

21:05:53 GMT-0400 Lap 47: Mario Moraes and Justin Wilson are off the pace at the back of the field.

21:08:13 GMT-0400 Lap 56: Dario seems to be waiting to make his move on Hideki Mutoh whose riding along at P1.

IndyCarNationLap 50: #27 Mutoh leads #10 Franchitti by .4112 of a second.

RacingNationHideki Mutoh is no "King Hiro" nice run by highest finishing AGR driver last week in Iowa, 3rd. #Indy car

21:10:56 GMT-0400 Lap 65: Justin Wilson is closing on Ryan Hunter-Reay for P16.

IndyCarPRLap 70: #27 Mutoh leads #10 Franchitti by .4112 of a second.

indy44Lap traffic,this will get interesting

VisionRacing75 laps of 300 complete at Richmond. No.20 Menards car is P12. Leader is Mutoh. He did not pit nor did Danica (P3). Dario is P2.

21:14:38 GMT-0400 Lap 77: Danica and Hideki Mutoh are on different pit strategies than the two Target cars.

luczodragonIf it stays green we will make it to lap 131 before we pit
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indy44@MyNameIsIRL Women lining up at Mutoh's rig as we speak

IndyCarNationLap 81: #27 Mutoh leads #10 Franchitti by .3434 of a second

See pitstops for Mutoh and Patrick on Lap 105 or so

FuriousWedgedont know what it looks like on tv but follow the leader is boring as hell in the stands

TheEDJE@FuriousWedge Trust us out here in TV land - aside from the chatter, the images aren't much better #irl #ics #indycar

MyNameIsIRLLap 98: First "Michael Jackson" reference. From Arute, of course.

RacingNationMaybe Moraes should be working on set-ups a bit more than sequined gloves. Jimmy Bryan is whirling underground right now.

VisionRacingTeams (+fans) have big screen in infield that we watch. Watching cars go by on track makes you a little dizzy @ Richmond. 100 laps complete.

21:22:08 GMT-0400 Lap 102: Helio Castroneves is gaining some ground on the lead four.

21:23:08 GMT-0400 Lap 105: Hideki Mutoh gives up the lead to make his next pit stop.

IndyCarNationLap 110: #10 Franchitti leads #7 Patrick by 2.1780 seconds. Lap 111: #7 Patrick pits for four tires, fuel and added one turn of front wing.

21:25:02 GMT-0400 Lap 111: The alternate pit strategy doesn't pay off yet as Danica comes into the pits.

VisionRacingCarpenter is P10. Mutoh and Danica pitted on a different strategies. 115 laps complete. Decided against extra front wing on next 20 car ...

Mutoh is currently pacing 1/2 second quicker on new tires but gives up the lead and a lap!

MyNameIsIRLArute's rolled up his sleeves, just dying to break out the gun show.

21:30:07 GMT-0400 Lap 128: Hideki Mutoh is running some of the fastest laps, but is down in the standings due to pit strategy.

21:30:37 GMT-0400 Lap 130: The lead cars are getting into some heavy lapped traffic.

luczodragonPitting lap 131, smooth stop

PlanetIrldotcomReady to nominate this for best oval race of the year! Can't wait til' Kentucky though.

VisionRacingCrew is setting up in pitbox. Coming in on next lap for green flag stop.

21:33:37 GMT-0400 Lap 138: Yellow for contact out of Turn 4 by Mike Conway. The damage doesn't appear to be heavy.

VisionRacingWe don't BEAT our fueler by the way. Yellow. That messes our strategy. Bugger

DRRIndyCarMike has brushed the wall. We're not really sure what happened there.

Franchitti comes in for a quick splash and out!

21:34:36 GMT-0400 Lap 140: Pits are open.

TheEDJERahal, Dixon, and Franchitti get pitstops under Yellow - they are 7/8ths of a lap ahead of all others at this point. #irl #ics #indycar
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IndyCarPRLet's catch up here: Lap 121: #10 Franchitti leads #9 Dixon by 1.1637 seconds. Lap 126: #06 Doornbos and #14 Hunter-Reay on pit road.

VisionRacingAfter the wave around 7 cars will be on lead lap. 11 cars one laps down (including 20 car in P13)

DRRIndyCarThis is not how we want to get airtime on Versus. Jack Arute about to interview Mike.

21:43:46 GMT-0400 Lap 153: One lap until back to green.

21:44:11 GMT-0400 Lap 154: Back to green flag racing!

kvracingGreen Flag, Moraes is now 17th, lap 156/300

indy44Go Mutoh!!!!

21:44:57 GMT-0400 Lap 156: Scott Dixon gets a great restart and already has a lead over 1 second.

chunter16Mutoh and Moraes driving like they care, very nice. #irl

21:47:33 GMT-0400 Lap 165: The Target cars are running some of the fastest laps of the race.

IndyCarPRLap 170: #9 Dixon leads #10 Franchitti by .8191 of a second. Lap 180: #9 Dixon leads #10 Franchitti by .7201 of a second.

TheEDJEDixon, Franchitti, Rahal, Mutoh, Patrick, Castroneves, Matos, Kanaan, Andretti, Weldon are the top 10 positions - LAP 173 #irl #ics #indycar

MyNameIsIRLSo...we're all done passing tonight. Thank you very much, red cars to the front please.

chunter16Castroneves hasn't had much face time tonight
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VisionRacingBTW those keeping up with baby count in the Indycar series, (Scott's) Emma Dixon is at her last race. She is due in 3 weeks. All our best!

pressdog@MyNameIsIRL only 115 more laps of lock step!

21:55:21 GMT-0400 Lap 191: Each driver should have to make one more pit stop.

FuriousWedgeWhy is this bad for ICS? I`m watching more than a few fans get up to leave with over 100 to go

21:57:06 GMT-0400 Lap 197: The lead cars are working their way through lapped traffic.

kvracing100 laps to go. Moraes is still 17th, fastest speed 155.336mph achieved on lap 159.

MyNameIsIRLRT: @FuriousWedge: Why is this bad for ICS? I`m watching more than a few fans get up to leave with over 100 to go

VisionRacing40 laps to our next pitstop at Richmond.

“It was a frustrating race, said Ed Carpenter - Vision Racing. You could run a decent pace on your own but this was like no Richmond race I have ever run before. The No. 20 Menards car was really affected by dirty air and loss of grip in traffic. We didn’t have much luck with cautions coming out of the pits either. Finishing in 13th place is nothing to be happy with, but we made it through in one piece when others didn’t. Caption & Image Credit: Vision Racing

Mutoh in the pits the same time Dixon leads about as many laps (73 laps) as he did.

22:00:44 GMT-0400 Lap 208: Dario Franchitti seems content to follow his teammate and wait until the end to make a move.

PlanetIrldotcomI can't wait til' we get to a road course. Never thought I would say that. We need passing and we need it now. #kyspeedwaysucks

kvracingMoraes just pitted, ties, fuel and also front wing taken out. Lap 218/300

22:03:57 GMT-0400 Lap 219: The top two cars will likely have to pit with around 50 laps to go.

TheEDJEDanica Patrick in and out on a Green Flag stop - Good to go to the end! #irl #ics #indycar

IndyCarPRLap 220: #9 Dixon leads #10 Franchitti by .4707 of a second. Lap 224: #7 Patrick pits for four tires and fuel and front wing adjustment.

VisionRacingDo we need to tell you? Leader is a red car. You're going to make me aren't you. Okay. Fine. Only because we like you. Dixon leads Dario.

VisionRacingThere are 4 red cars in top 5. But one is not a regular: Dixon, Dario, @grahamrahal then helio and Kanaan. Ed is P11. 1 lap to pitstop

indy44Yellow for Helio,Ganassi gets race on silver platter!!!

YELLOW Flag Lap 242 - Less than 50 laps to go!

16AndGeorgetownPenske's not having a good day
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pressdogglad I didn't pay money to see this

kart58Another gift to Ganassi, tied up with a big red bow. Booooooo. #IndyCar

22:15:55 GMT-0400 Lap 252: The Target cars have the advantage as the yellow came out right before they had to pit.

MyNameIsIRLI'd say the Penske cars conspired to give this race to the Ganassi cars, but that would be ludicrous.

TheEDJE@MyNameIsIRL - No! It is a gift for having won the INDY 500 Ganassi thought he would win #irl #ics #indycar

22:19:22 GMT-0400 Lap 257: The entire field except Dixon, Franchitti, Rahal, Kanaan and Andretti are waved around.

GREEN, GREEN, GREEN Restart

luczodragonBlew by Wilson, now time to get after it with 40 laps, chasing Marco and Tony

indy44Dixon 162 Dario 160 BUBBYE!!!!!!!

22:21:40 GMT-0400 Lap 262: There are many cars between P3 - Rahal and P4 - Mutoh.

VisionRacingEd is stuck in dirty air (traffic) and uses some choice words. His choice of words is not as clean as the air he is stuck in.

22:22:29 GMT-0400 Lap 265: The two Target cars are easily pulling away from the field.
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FuriousWedgeStands are gonna be less than half of what we started with by the finish at least traffic wont be an issue

22:27:38 GMT-0400 Lap 283: Scott Dixon is getting into some lapped traffic with Dario looking to take advantage.

22:30:19 GMT-0400 Lap 291: No one has been able to work the highline very well tonight.

luczodragon8 laps left, could be another top 10 finish for Rafa and the team

CrashGladysI can't blame Dixon for being frustrated... this is just plain boring racing!! I just don't want him to leave next yr...

chunter16Did I hear "push to pass?" I don't like it, personally, but if it keeps people interested it's okay.

22:32:18 GMT-0400 Lap 299: White flag. Scott Dixon leads Dario Franchitti by .2422 seconds.

pressdogMercifully, it's over. White flag is a symbol of truce in this case. Emma has gotten more air in this race than anyone. Floyd is all over it

22:32:33 GMT-0400 Scott Dixon wins the SunTrust Indy Challenge! - This ties Dixon with Sam Hornish for ALL TIME WINS in the ICS!

luczodragonChecker flag, Rafa finishes 8th

chunter16Congratulations to Viso for breaking the streak - he finishes his first race of the season!

VisionRacingCheckered flag + congrats go to Dixon. Maybe we should consider painting our car red for a race. At the very least we might get some breaks.

kvracingMoraes finishes 16th at Richmond.

RacingNationMercy, Mercy, thankfully its over. Dixon over Franchitti, Rahal trails in 3rd. Mutoh and Danica round out the top-5. #Indycar

MyNameIsIRLAt least Viso finished. Congrats @HVMRacing!

indy44Thank God Dario didn't win,if I had to listen to his wife again my head would immediately burst

kart58Zzzzzzz. Wake me up when they get to Watkins Glen. G'night.

pressdog300 laps of Fail

FuriousWedgeafter race fireworks most exciting thing tonight at the track.

PlanetIrldotcomBREAKING NEWS! Danica is itching for a win.... #viewingenhanced

MyNameIsIRLDario says "I really apologize to fans because that was a dreadful race tonight."

alex_lloydA day of lots of pics with the rented lense. Very nice.. Will try to tweet a pic tomorrow. Just watched race.. Boring but still a cool track

On Versus right now - EJ Viso places 12th in fist finish of the season. Image Credit: hvmracing (2009)

HVMracing12th! 'Nuff Said! (EJ Viso)

SpeedJournal(Indy)6/27 :: Dixon wins- http://tinyurl.com/nk9vfk #autoracing

Road courses are next with Watkins Glen's 3.4 mile classic driving challenge! Can ... Not ... Wait!

How the field of 20 fared - (** denotes Transition Player)

Pos Driver Team Gap
1. Scott Dixon Ganassi 300 laps
2. Dario Franchitti Ganassi + 0.3109s
3. Graham Rahal Newman/Haas/Lanigan + 2.4085s**
4. Hideki Mutoh Andretti Green +13.5302s
5. Danica Patrick Andretti Green +14.1111s
6. Tony Kanaan Andretti Green + 1 lap
7. Marco Andretti Andretti Green + 1 lap
8. Raphael Matos Luczo Dragon + 1 lap
9. Robert Doornbos Newman/Haas/Lanigan + 1 lap**
10. Dan Wheldon Panther + 1 lap
11. Tomas Scheckter Dreyer & Reinbold + 1 lap
12. EJ Viso HVM + 1 lap**
13. Ed Carpenter Vision + 1 lap
14. Justin Wilson Coyne + 2 laps**
15. Ryan Hunter-Reay Foyt + 2 laps
16. Mario Moraes KV + 3 laps**

Retirements:

Helio Castroneves Penske 245 laps
Mike Conway Dreyer & Reinbold 135 laps
Ryan Briscoe Penske 26 laps
Jaques Lazier 3G 0 laps

Unlike the race last week on the short track in Iowa, NO Transition Players retired.

All former ChampCar drivers finished the race in rolling fashion ... even EJ Viso!

... notes from The EDJESource URL: http://allnewfordcar.blogspot.com/search/label/Twitter
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