IRL: Indy 500 Results

It was an exciting Indy 500 with several incidents and drama surrounding who would win. That is until the final laps. At the close of the 500-miler, Helio Castroneves ran away from the field in the closing laps.

Dan Wheldon finished second, but the next biggest newsbreaker in the race was female driver Danica Patrick, who posted a career-best finish of third in the Indy 500. One or two more tweaks and she might have been the first lady to win American auto racing's biggest event.

Indy 500 Results

Finish	Start	Driver	Laps	Status	Avg Fin
1	1	Helio Castroneves	200	Running	6.11
2	18	Dan Wheldon	200	Running	9.00
3	10	Danica Patrick	200	Running	9.00
4	24	Townsend Bell	200	Running	12.00
5	9	Will Power	200	Running	9.00
6	5	Scott Dixon	200	Running	9.14
7	3	Dario Franchitti	200	Running	9.00
8	17	Ed Carpenter	200	Running	13.83
9	13	Paul Tracy	200	Running	5.50
10	16	Hideki Mutoh	200	Running	8.50
11	30	Alex Tagliani	200	Running	11.00
12	26	Tomas Scheckter	200	Running	17.25
13	11	Alex Lloyd	200	Running	19.00
14	20	Scott Sharp	200	Running	16.08
15	2	Ryan Briscoe	200	Running	13.25
16	19	Anthony Foyt IV	200	Running	17.00
17	21	Sarah Fisher	200	Running	25.38
18	27	Mike Conway	200	Running	18.00
19	28	John Andretti	200	Running	21.67
20	31	Milka Duno	199	Running	23.33
21	14	Vitor Meira	173	Accident	9.00
22	12	Raphael Matos	173	Accident	22.00
23	15	Justin Wilson	160	Accident	25.00
24	29	E J Viso	139	Mechanical	25.00
25	32	Nelson Phillippe	130	Accident	25.00
26	25	Oriol Servia	98	Mechanical	18.50
27	6	Tony Kanaan	97	Mechanical	14.25
28	23	Robert Doornbos	85	Accident	28.00
29	22	Davey Hamilton	79	Accident	14.22
30	8	Marco Andretti	56	Mechanical	14.75
31	4	Graham Rahal	55	Accident	32.00
32	33	Ryan Hunter-Reay	19	Accident	19.00
33	7	Mario Moraes	0	Accident	25.50
34		Alex Tagliani	0	Did Not Qualify	11.00
35		Buddy Lazier	0	Did Not Qualify	11.23
36		Stanton Barrett	0	Did Not Qualify

F1: Monaco GP Results

Is there any stopping Brawn Racing? Already the dominant force in not only Formula 1, but also the Unified Power Rankings (which is our attempt to compare all of the major series), Jenson Button has now won five of the first six races and he's going to pad his lead in those standings because the Monaco Grand Prix has a bonus attached to it as one of racing's marquee events.

Of course teammate Rubens Barrichello came in second, but that didn't catch anyone by surprise either.

Pretty much everyone held serve and finished close to where they started, with the exception of drivers like Heikki Kovalainen who crashed on lap 51 and slipped from seventh to 16th and Sebastian Vettel, whose stellar fourth-place qualification effort went for nothing when he wrecked on lap 15.

Monaco Grand Prix Results

Finish	Start	Driver	Laps	Status	Avg Fin
1	1	Jenson Button	78	Running	9.88
2	3	Rubens Barrichello	78	Running	8.41
3	2	Kimi Raikkonen	78	Running	9.44
4	5	Felipe Massa	78	Running	6.71
5	8	Mark Webber	78	Running	9.33
6	6	Nico Rosberg	78	Running	13.25
7	9	Fernando Alonso	78	Running	6.63
8	14	Sebastian Bourdais	78	Running	14.00
9	13	Giancarlo Fisichella	78	Running	9.64
10	19	Timo Glock	77	Running	11.00
11	16	Nick Heidfeld	77	Running	9.60
12	20	Lewis Hamilton	77	Running	5.00
13	18	Jarno Trulli	77	Running	11.38
14	15	Adrian Sutil	77	Running	16.33
15	10	Kazuki Nakajima	76	Running	11.00
16	7	Heikki Kovalainen	51	Accident	12.33
17	17	Robert Kubica	28	Brakes	8.00
18	4	Sebastian Vettel	15	Accident	11.50
19	12	Nelson Piquet Jr	10	Crash Damage	18.00
20	11	Sebastian Buemi	10	Accident	20.00

Castroneves wins Indy 500

Helio Castroneves won the 93rd Indy 500 in dominant fashion.

Our View: He was uncontested in the last segment, which took all the stress away from his fantasy owners.

Rain suspends HH practice

Moments after Robby Gordon slapped the wall in Happy Hour, rain started to fall, which suspended practice. This will probably be it for the night.

Our View: Drivers knew this was coming and spent most of the first session testing things they would have tested in Happy Hour, so the net effect will not be very great.

R Gordon hits wall in HH

Robby Gordon slapped the wall at the five minute mark of Happy Hour and dropped debris on the track. He porbably won't need a backup car.

Our View: The urgency of practice is picking up with rain just outside the track.

N'Wide: Edwards on Lowe's pole

Carl Edwards posted a lap of 183.175 mph to sit on the Nationwide Carquest Auto Parts 300 pole. His closest rival in the points, Kyle Busch qualified second, but will have to drop to the back of the pack Saturday night because of an engine change.

Our View: Starting up front in a 300-mile race is very important, so Edwards has to be considered a threat. Busch cannot be discounted, however, since that kid can work traffic better than almost any other driver in the field.

Rain does not affect Kahne

In response to a question of whether Kasey Kahne approached the first practice session differently because of potential rain canceling Happy Hour, he replied “not really. We just tried to get as many laps in as we could. Hopefully we can get the last session in because the conditions will be very similar to what we should have for tomorrow night’s race. We have a pretty good Budweiser Dodge Charger and we need to keep wrenching on some things to make it as good as we can.”

Our View: Kahne has been able to run strong at Lowe's even when he's struggled elsewhere, which makes him a very interesting sleeper.

Hamlin posts fastest lap in Sat a.m. practice

Denny Hamlin posted the single fastest lap in Friday morning's practice with a speed of 184.338 mph.

Our View: That's all well and good, but his average speed of 179.385 mph during 27 laps was only seventh best on that grid.

F1: Vettel has lightest car

Sebastian Vettel qualified fourth for the Monaco Grand Prix with the lightest car on the grid. With the driver weight and fuel load, his car is nearly 10.5ks lighter than anyone else. The complete list can be found at Crash.net.

Our View: If not for the fact that Jenson Button and Rubens Barrichello were in front of him, Vettel might be able to scoot to the lead, but they are going to be hard to pass. Once in the lead, they have more fuel on board to give them a chance to employ alternate strategy.

Newman wins Sat a.m. practice

Ryan Newman posted the quickest average speeds in practice one, with a speed of 180.180 mph during 17 laps.

Our View: With regards to the talking heads at Fox – one fast lap does not win either practice or a race.

Sorenson slaps wall, McMurray eats donut

Reed Sorenson and Jamie McMurray got together at the seven minute mark in the first practice session, which put a donut on the No. 26 and slammed the No. 43 into the wall.

Our View: McMurray was faster, but discretion dictates a little give and take. That is the same kind of impatience that has made him a risky proposition on a weekly basis during the race.

Practice begins amidst sprinkles

The first race-trim practice session for the Coca-Cola 600 is underway with rain sprinkling the track.

Our View: Actually, this may replicate Sunday night's conditions fairly well. The track is cooler than it otherwise would be and the heavy air mimics dew,

F1: Monaco GP Lineup

Jenson button continues to be the hottest driver on the Formula 1 circuit. Despite an average starting position of nearly 12th in seven attempts, he put down a blistering fast lap of one minute, 14.902 seconds and will roll off from the pole. That is critical to success on the tight, twisty Monaco road course.

Kimi Raikkonen is in the second position in a Ferrari.

Button is not the only Brawn driver at the front of the field. This new organization has topped the Unified Power Rankings in recent weeks, and teammate Rubens Barrichello starts third.

Lewis Hamilton's struggles continue. He crashed barely four laps into qualification and will have to roll off the grid deep in the field in 16th. He will be lucky to earn a single championship point and should not be considered a good bet to win.

Lineup

Start	Driver	Avg. Fin	Avg. Start	Attempts
1	Jenson Button	11.14	11.71	7
2	Kimi Raikkonen	10.25	6.25	8
3	Rubens Barrichello	8.81	8.94	16
4	Sebastian Vettel	5.00	19.00	1
5	Felipe Massa	7.17	10.83	6
6	Nico Rosberg	15.67	6.33	3
7	Heikki Kovalainen	10.50	9.50	2
8	Mark Webber	10.20	10.20	5
9	Fernando Alonso	6.57	5.71	7
10	Kazuki Nakajima	7.00	13.00	1
11	Sebastian Buemi
12	Nelson Piquet Jr	17.00	17.00	1
13	Giancarlo Fisichella	9.69	9.38	13
14	Sebastian Bourdais	20.00	16.00	1
15	Adrian Sutil	17.50	18.50	2
16	Lewis Hamilton	1.50	2.50	2
17	Nick Heidfeld	9.44	13.56	9
18	Robert Kubica	3.50	6.50	2
19	Jarno Trulli	11.25	7.50	12
20	Timo Glock	12.00	10.00	1

F1: Ecclestone to Ferrari "quit and I'll sue"

In the latest barrage in the war of words, Bernie Ecclestone has told Ferrari that if they carry through with their intention to leave F next year, FIA would sue for breach of contract, according to PlanetF1.com.

Our View: Ferrari has become too accustomed to getting their way in motorsports, but fair is fair, If they have a contract, they should be expected to honor it.

Elliott to make 800th start

Bill Elliott will make his 800th Cup start this weekend when he rolls off the grid in the Coca-Cola 600.

Our View: Experience counts in this race and no one in the field has more than the Georgia native.

Persistent back pain could shorten Gordon's career

If last week's procedure to alleviate his back pain is not successful, Jeff Gordon may retire from NASCAR sooner than he hoped, according to SceneDaily.com.

Our View: Gordon has talked about retirement off and on for several years now, so it would seem that any further problem could push him over the edge.

Hendrick has confidence in 2 Juniors

Rick Hendrick has expressed confidence over the pairing of Dale Earnhardt Jr. and crew chief Tony Eury Jr., according to SceneDaily.com.

Our View: The first question is "based on what?" (Obviously something we can't see.) Regardless of whether Hendrick is confident, none of that will matter if Earnhardt continues to make catastrophic mistakes in the pits.

IRL: Castroneves free at last

Friday was a good day for Helio Castroneves. In addition to topping the practice chart, it was announced that federal prosecutors dropped the final charge against him in his tax evasion case, according to the Orlando Sentinel.

Our View: Stress free, Castroneves can now turn 100% of his attention to winning the Indy 500.

Dominating the front of the pack

A driver's finishing position on a track is certainly important—and in the long run, that is the only way most fantasy games pay points—but it is not always the best indicator of who has been strongest. When handicapping a race, we often find it helpful to look at the number of laps drivers have spent in the top 10.

There are two reasons why this is important. The most obvious of these is that driving in the first quarter of the field means a racer and his car has raw power, but equally important is the fact the further forward a car is in the pack, the less likely the driver is to get into trouble. Top-10 drivers are far less likely to make silly mistakes that could cause your fantasy selection to end the day in the garage.

During the last five years, one driver stands head and shoulders above the competition, and he will come as no surprise to anyone who's played the game for more than a year. Jimmie Johnson remains the master of this track, with five victories and 14 top-15s in 16 starts and his time spent in the top-10 reflects this. Johnson has been that far up on the grid in 79 percent of the laps he's run, boasting 2,588 of a possible 3,275 circuits.

The next driver on the list might be a bigger surprise, however. Despite finishing 25th or worse in five of the last 10 races held at Lowe's, Kyle Busch has managed to log 1,850 laps with the leader, which equals 56.5 percent of the time. More important still, most of these laps came in the last three Lowe's races and he converted those strong runs into three consecutive top-fives.

Kasey Kahne is the only other driver to spend more than half of his time among the top-10 during the last five years. He's run with the leaders 50.8 percent of the time (1,665 laps) and has been even more productive than Busch or Johnson in recent events. In his last six starts on this track, Kahne has won three times and finished second on another occasion. With the new Dodge engine in his car this week, he should be considered a threat once more.

Top-10 Laps, last five years

Driver	Top-10 Laps	Possible Laps	%
Jimmie Johnson	2,588	3,275	79.0%
Kyle Busch	1,850	3,275	56.5%
Kasey Kahne	1,665	3,275	50.8%
Mark Martin	1,634	3,275	49.9%
Dale Earnhardt Jr.	1,634	3,275	49.9%
Greg Biffle	1,625	3,275	49.6%
Jeff Burton	1,553	3,275	47.4%
David Ragan	593	1,471	40.3%
Ryan Newman	1,274	3,275	38.9%
Kurt Busch	1,227	3,275	37.5%
Jeff Gordon	1,172	3,275	35.8%
Clint Bowyer	726	2,205	32.9%
Denny Hamlin	835	2,541	32.9%
Matt Kenseth	1,060	3,275	32.4%
Tony Stewart	1,043	3,275	31.8%
Brian Vickers	914	2,938	31.1%
Elliott Sadler	866	3,275	26.4%
Carl Edwards	816	3,275	24.9%
Casey Mears	789	3,275	24.1%
Joe Nemechek	577	2,538	22.7%
Scott Riggs	726	3,275	22.2%
Jamie McMurray	682	3,275	20.8%
David Reutimann	283	1,407	20.1%
Bobby Labonte	620	3,275	18.9%
Michael Waltrip	510	2,875	17.7%
Kevin Harvick	459	3,275	14.0%
Dave Blaney	444	3,275	13.6%
Martin Truex Jr.	349	2,605	13.4%
Reed Sorenson	227	2,205	10.3%
David Gilliland	174	1,805	9.6%
Tony Raines	212	2,539	8.3%
Sam Hornish Jr.	56	734	7.6%
David Stremme	80	1,807	4.4%
Robby Gordon	141	3,275	4.3%
Bill Elliott	43	1,471	2.9%
Mike Bliss	31	1,070	2.9%
A.J. Allmendinger	8	1,471	0.5%
Juan Montoya	5	1,471	0.3%
Paul Menard	1	1,471	0.1%
Todd Bodine	0	334	0.0%

F1: Ecclestone sees end in sight

"I think everybody is more or less happy with the budget cap," Bernie Ecclestone said in a report at AutoRacingDaily.com, "although just how much? They will go with it higher, maybe it will be lower. It’s just a case of sorting it out. I am confident all the teams will still be racing next year.”

Our View: It appears that teams are willing to participate, so long as the two-tier technical requirements are scrapped. Any kind of salary cap should provide closer competition, which will make fantasy races more interesting.

IRL: Indy 500 Final Practice

The final practice for the Indy 500 is in the books and only two drivers topped the 223 mph mark. Helio Castroneves posted a single fast lap of 223.920, which was nearly one mile per hour faster than the third quickest driver Mario Moraes. The only racer in the same zip code was Will Power, who clocked in at 223.560.

Practice Times

Rank	Driver	Speed
1	Helio Castroneves	223.920
2	Will Power	223.560
3	Mario Moraes	222.951
4	Dan Wheldon	222.386
5	Ryan Briscoe	222.374
6	Dario Franchitti	222.357
7	Scott Dixon	222.017
8	Graham Rahal	221.771
9	Townsend Bell	221.434
10	Davey Hamilton	221.371
11	Tony Kanaan	221.104
12	Paul Tracy	220.979
13	Vitor Meira	220.607
14	Raphael Matos	220.348
15	Marco Andretti	220.205
16	A.J. Foyt IV	220.119
17	Scott Sharp	219.977
18	Tomas Scheckter	219.887
19	Alex Tagliani	219.833
20	Hideki Mutoh	219.627
21	Ed Carpenter	219.602
22	Mike Conway	219.560
23	Danica Patrick	219.328
24	Oriol Servia	219.317
25	Alex Lloyd	219.262
26	Justin Wilson	218.919
27	Ryan Hunter-Reay	218.593
28	Robert Doornbos	218.164
29	E.J. Viso	217.788
30	Milka Duno	217.599
31	Sarah Fisher	217.315
32	John Andretti	217.296
33	Nelson Philippe	216.631

Schrader 13th at Cresco

Ken Schrader finished 13th in an USMTS Modified race at Cresco Speedway in Iowa in a race won by Zack VanderBeek. He was competing in his third consecutive race with that series after finishing 13th at Oskaloosa and 12th in Marshalltown.

Our View: At least he was consistent.

Yahoo! Qualification Story

Check out this five-page summary (.pdf) of who's hot at Lowe's after qualification for the Coca-Cola 600.

Newman wins 44th pole

Ryan Newman paced Lowe's with a speed of 188.475 mph to earn his 44th pole for the Coca-Cola 600.

Our View: Despite the length of this race, qualification is important and Newman is in great shape to earn his first top-10 at this track since 2005.

IRL: The Granddaddy of Them all

Event Day Games Preview: When NASCAR was just a gleam in Big Bill France's eye, America already had one of the biggest sports events in the World—the Indy 500.

Memorial Day is one of the best days in auto racing. Get up early to watch the Monaco Grand Prix, grab a second cup of coffee, and then fire up your cell phones to play Event Day Games' first-ever IRL contest. We just couldn't help becoming part of the 93rd running of this great American race.

The Indy 500 is so big that the Indy Racing League takes the entire month of May to prepare for it and the drama has already started. Helio Castroneves drew first blood by winning the pole over his Penske teammate Ryan Briscoe. The front row is crowded with Chip Ganassi's Dario Franchitti lined up to the outside of this amazing three-abreast configuration and watching them barrel down into turn one is hair raising.

Further back in the field, equal rights are alive and well as Danica Patrick, Sarah Fisher and Milka Duno locked up more than 25 percent of the field for women drivers. Fisher starts 21st and has the most experience of the group as she competes in her eighth Indy 500, but Patrick has better odds since she rolls off the grid 10th.

Join us at http://www.eventdaygames.com/ this week to play along with our unique fantasy game.

Qualification order

Jayski.com has posted the qualification order for the Coca-Cola 600.

Our View: Track position is important at Lowe's and the track should get fastest as the temperatures cool. Jimmie Johnson rolls off the grid 19th and most of the fastest cars in practice are earlier than that, which should create an interesting session.

N'Wide: Townley crashes

John Wes Townley became the latest casualty of Nationwide practice. He crashed near the end of practice two.

Our View: Have you noticed how much more exciting Nationwide practice is? That's why these guys need track time.

Martin wins practice

Mark Martin continues to be the hottest driver on the NASCAR circuit and he topped the first practice session with a speed of 185.217 mph. This is a session in which drivers typically work on qualification setups.

Our View: That makes him the favorite to win Thursday night's pole and the way he's run in the last month, he has to be considered a front runner for the Coca-Cola 600 as well.

F1: Ferrari loses round one in budget spat

According to PlanetF1.com Ferrari has lost the first round of the budget gap spat after a French court ruled against their injunction, saying there is no "imminent danger" preceding the May 29th deadline to declare intentions to run 2010.

Our View: Max Mosley needs to become familiar with the term, "win the battle; lose the war," however.

F1: Alonso doesn’t want to race "small teams"

In an article at AutoRacingDaily.com, Fernando Alonso said "If the big teams and the big manufacturers leave Formula One then I don’t want to race with small teams, because it is not any more F1 and there are many other categories.”

Our View: This tempest in the teapot is threatening to become a hurricane due to the heavy handed handling by Max Mosley.

Gordon has Texas car

The No. 24 team has brought their Texas car to Lowe's for Jeff Gordon to drive this weekend.

Our View: That's the car in which Gordon snapped his long winless streak, so he's got to be watched closely in Coca-Cola 600 prelims.

Wallace 9th, Schrader 12th in USMTS

On Wednesday night, Kenny Wallace and Ken Schrader traveled to Marshalltown, Iowa to challenge the USMTS dirt track racers. Wallace finished ninth after starting 20th. Schrader finished 12th after starting ninth.

Our View: There's nothing like a little dirt in the teeth to help identify the real racers.

N'Wide: Bliss changes engine

Mike Bliss missed a shift in the first practice session for the Carquest Auto Parts 300 and will be forced to change an engine. He will join Kyle Busch and Brad Keselowski at the back of the pack to start on Saturday.

Our View: Bliss was expected to be one of the top Nationwide Regulars, and this certainly doesn't improve his odds. Look for a solid but unspectacular run now.

N'Wide: Keselowski crashes again

Déjà vu. Brad Keselowski destroyed a second car in the first practice after apparently cutting a right front tire for a second time on Thursday.

Our View: Luckily, the shop is just around the corner, so they can get a third car to the track before Saturday, but that Chevy will start the race with no practice time at all.

N'Wide: Knupp crashes hard

Brandon Knupp has crashed Bob Schacht's unsponsored No. 75 in Nationwide practice. Hopefully, they have a backup car, because that one isn't going anywhere.

Our View: A graduate of the ARCA Truck series, Knupp has made nine Camping World Truck Series starts, but he hopes this will be his first Nationwide race.

Truck: Fitzpatrick joins Harvick

Canadian driver J R Fitzpatrick will join Kevin Harvick, Inc. for eight Camping World Truck Series races beginning at Dover, according to PaddockTalk.com. Ironically, the announcement came the same week as one sending American Cale Gale to Canada in a joint KHI effort.

Our View: Fitzpatrick started the season with a ride in The Racers Group truck until funding dried up. Harvick will be able to provide greater resources.

F1: Rosberg tops P2

On Thursday, Nico Rosberg posted the fastest time in the second practice session for the Monaco Grand Prix, according to PlanetF1.com.

Our View: Rosberg led Lewis Hamilton, Rubens Barichello, Jenson Button and Felipe Massa as the top five drivers. This is a good indication of who will finish up front in the race.

Practice Two Speeds

Rank	Driver	Best Time	Laps
1	Nico Rosberg	1:15.243	45
2	Lewis Hamilton	1:15.445	35
3	Rubens Barrichello	1:15.590	41
4	Jenson Button	1:15.774	36
5	Felipe Massa	1:15.832	42
6	Sebastian Vettel	1:15.847	33
7	Heikki Kovalainen	1:15.984	45
8	Kimi Räikkönen	1:15.985	43
9	Kazuki Nakajima	1:16.260	43
10	Nelson Piquet Jr.	1:16.286	43
11	Fernando Alonso	1:16.552	39
12	Mark Webber	1:16.579	27
13	Adrian Sutil	1:16.675	38
14	Jarno Trulli	1:16.915	43
15	Sebastian Buemi	1:16.983	48
16	Sebastian Bourdais	1:17.052	48
17	Nick Heidfeld	1:17.109	40
18	Timo Glock	1:17.207	45
19	Giancarlo Fisichella	1:17.504	45
20	Robert Kubica	No time	2

Practice One Speeds

N'Wide: Ky Busch has milky oil

Kyle Busch is reporting that his oil is turning "milky," which is an indication that water is getting into it. The team will probably change engines (pending NASCAR's approval) and start at the back of the pack in the Carquest Auto Parts 300.

Our View: It doesn't matter where this kid starts; he'll contend for victory before the night is over.

N'Wide: Keselowski crashes in first practice

Brad Keselowski cut a tire and destroyed his Nationwide Series car only five minutes into Thursday's 90 minute session. A bolt on the suspension was the culprit.

Our View: This happened early enough that the team should be able to recover, but don't commit to the No. 88 until they get on track with their backup car and so you can see how fast it is.

F1: Kovalainen downplays speed

Heikki Kovalainen is downplaying his and teammate Lewis Hamilton's speed in the first practice session that placed them third and fourth on that grid, according to PlanetF1.com.

Our View: He says that while this is a step in the right direction, their speed was nearly a half second slower than leader Rubens Barrichello.

Practice One Speeds

F1: Barrichello draws first blood

Rubens Barrichello drew first blood in practice for the 2009 Monaco Grand Prix according to PlanetF1.com, posting a time of one minute, 17.189 seconds and narrowly beating Felipe Massa.

Our View: Third-best Lewis Hamilton is still hoping to turn his season around, while Heikki Kovalainen and Kimi Raikkonen rounded out the top five.

Practice One Speeds

Rank	Driver	Best Time	Laps
1	Rubens Barrichello	1:17.189	25
2	Felipe Massa	1:17.499	30
3	Lewis Hamilton	1:17.578	25
4	Heikki Kovalainen	1:17.686	29
5	Kimi Räikkönen	1:17.839	29
6	Kazuki Nakajima	1:18.000	29
7	Nico Rosberg	1:18.024	27
8	Jenson Button	1:18.080	27
9	Fernando Alonso	1:18.283	30
10	Mark Webber	1:18.348	22
11	Sebastian Buemi	1:18.695	36
12	Nelson Piquet Jr.	1:19.204	36
13	Sebastian Vettel	1:19.233	16
14	Sebastian Bourdais	1:19.255	31
15	Giancarlo Fisichella	1:19.534	28
16	Robert Kubica	1:19.555	31
17	Nick Heidfeld	1:19.579	23
18	Adrian Sutil	1:19.600	24
19	Timo Glock	1:19.698	24
20	Jarno Trulli	1:19.831	28

F1: BMW undecided about 2010

With a May 29th deadline looming to secure a place on next year's Formula 1 grid, BMW has yet to decide whether they will participate in Max Mosley's proposed two-tier salary cap scheme, according to team principal Mario Thiessen.

Our View: Mosley has threatened that unless people honor the May 29th deadline, there may not be a spot open later. His bigger concern should be whether he is able to fill that grid at all with Ferrari and Sauber threatening to pull out and several other teams in BMW's shoes.

N'Wide: Davis gets sponsor

Marc Davis has signed a sponsor for the Nationwide Carquest Auto Parts 300, according to SceneDaily.com. That sponsor is The Word Network.

Our View: Davis is attempting to become the first fulltime Black driver in a major NASCAR division since Wendell Scott and he's doing it the same way—as an owner/driver. Fans of dark horses have to think of him as a sentimental favorite.

Schrader 13th at Oskaloosa

On Tuesday night, Ken Schrader did not fare very well in his first of three nights competing against the USMTS dirt track stars at Southern Iowa Speedway in Oskaloosa. After starting 15th in the 30-lap A main, he was able to climb to only 13th at the end of the race.

Our View: For Schrader, this is as much about having fun doing what he loves. He would certainly have wanted a better result, but the track time was important nonetheless.

Jason Hughes won the feature.

Kahne gets new engine

Kasey Kahne will run the new Dodge engine in the Coca-Cola 600 according to SceneDaily.com.

Our View: This adds another unknown to the equation. If the engine holds together, Kahne could be a favorite to win this weekend, but fantasy owners have to be willing to roll the dice in case he blows up.