Tweet-By-Tweet Round #4 Race - The Itaipava Sao Paulo Indy 300 presented by Nestle

The winners trophy for Round #4 of the IndyCar Series - The Itaipava Sao Paulo Indy 300 presented by Nestle. Image Credit: IZOD ICS (2011)

Tweet-By-Tweet Round #4 Race - The Itaipava Sao Paulo Indy 300 presented by Nestle

DRRIndyCar DRRIndyCar Larry to JW - "Coming to the green. Have a great start and a great race."

GREEN, GREEN, GREEN! Race start. Image Credit: IZOD ICS (2011)

FollowAndretti Andretti Autosport - Green, green, green! #SaoPauloIndy300 #IndyCar

Big contact on the first start - Danica Patrick, Tony Kanaan, Simona de Silvestro and Helio Castroneves all involved. Image Credit: IZOD ICS (2011)

IndyCar IZOD IndyCar Series - Yellow coming out. Multiple cars make contact. Hunter-Reay, Castroneves, de Silvestro

FemaleRacing Female Racing News - Oh No big wreck in the first turn @DanicaPatrick and @simdesilvestro involved..

FollowAndretti Andretti Autosport - RHR and DP both involved in lap one incidents.

indy44 Matt Archuleta - Let's see Danica and Simona go after Helio in the pits. #Indycar

Five drivers involved and the two race sponsored cars are involved.

ConquestRacing Conquest Racing - Caution on L1 for Hunter-Reay in the tire barrier. Several cars caught up in the incident including Castroneves, de Silvestro and Kanaan.

KennethHolland Kenneth Holland - RT @LewisFranck: Helio has hit everything this year but the lottery.

Three's company - Danica Patrick, Simona de Silvestro and Helio Castronves collide. Image Credit: ©2011, LAT USA via IZOD ICS (2011)

TheEDJE Edmund Jenks - De Simona’s car ends up on top of Patrick’s car – we will leave you to come up with your own comment.

PCaporali Pat Caporali - WHY OH WHY do #IndyCar fans have to turn to back alley illegal video feeds on the internet?! Ridiculous. I'm f-ing over it.

99forever Steph@MoreFrontWing - I can remember races in Toronto where all the Canadian hopefuls were out early. It sucks big time. Sad for the Brazilian fans.

shagers Shane Rogers - Looked like Saavedra getting sideways is what put Danica in the wall. #indycar

TheEDJE Edmund Jenks - 4 of 75 laps complete … this will be a 2 hour timed event – Top five are Power, Dixon, Rahal, Briscoe, and Franchitti with 1 to go to Green

TheEDJE Edmund Jenks - GREEN, GREEN, GREEN – Restart of the Itaipava Sao Paulo Indy 300 presented by Nestle

The second restart and some spins. Very wet. Image Credit: IZOD ICS (2011)

FollowAndretti Andretti Autosport - Green! And yellow again. Lots of slipping & sliding.

FollowAndretti Andretti Autosport - Sorry, no yellow. Still green. Mike P5, Marco P12, RHR P20

IndyCar IZOD IndyCar Series - Bourdais, Wilson, Dixon and Hinchcliffe spin. No yellow. Cars back under power.

FollowAndretti Andretti Autosport - Skies are black here... prob more rain coming. RHR needs new rear wing. Possible suspension damage.

TheEDJE Edmund Jenks - YELLOW Flag full course caution … oops, RED Flag – race stopped due to rain.

jpmontoya Juan Pablo Montoya - Red flag in the brasil at the indy race

kart58 Paige - All this graceful spinning. Somebody play Swan Lake. #indycar

tracksideonline TrackSide Online - You can blame all of this on @TSO_Patrick - he's the one who said it wouldn't rain because he brought a jacket.

TheEDJE Edmund Jenks - At the RED Flag, top five positions – Power, Briscoe, Conway (up from P9), Sato (up from P10), & Rahal.

DRRIndyCar DRRIndyCar - Team bonding http://twitpic.com/4s03vo

Fieldof33 Paul Dalbey - Just caught up with race. Yikes! This is a cluster! This looks like Bobby Unser rowing to his 1975 Indy victory!

A big storm in Sao Paulo - Rain, wind, lightning. Image Credit: IZOD ICS (2011)

TheEDJE Edmund Jenks - Radar shows that this race may only be able to be run on “Wets” (wet grooved tires), so much for ChampCar tire rules.

indy44 Matt Archuleta - Standings at Red Flag P1 WP P2 RB P3 MC P4 TS P5 GR P6 DF P7 MA P8 CK P9 AT P10 OS P11 SS P12 EV P13 SD P14 JJ P15 JH P16 AB P17 JH P18 JW

indy44 Matt Archuleta - P19 RM P20 SB P21 VM P22 RHR P23 HC P24 SDS P25 DP P26 TK

IndyCarPR INDYCAR PR - Race Control: Cars have been released to the garage and teams can work on them. Red flag remains in effect.

RacingNation Steve Zautke - If this continues I might be busting out some old #Indy500 tapes, yes, ye olde VHS tapes LOL #Indycar

99forever Steph@MoreFrontWing - This delay is still going to screw up a lot of travel plans. Lots of people were due to fly out a few hours after the race. #indycar

TheEDJE Edmund Jenks - At RED Flag, timed racing stopped at 30 min. - on RESTART, 90 min. will remain - 9 LAPS complete, will start at LAP 10.

The crew doing some work on Helio's #3. Image Credit: IZOD ICS (2011)

BaronVonClutch Peter Leung by indy44 Conway: 'The track was undriveable.... It's a bit annoying waiting here when we've done only 10 laps. I just want to get back out' #IndyCar

VersusIndyCar Versus IndyCar - RT @kvracing: @TonyKanaan car is being fired up in the garage, he will be able to resume racing!!

IndyCarPR INDYCAR PR - RT @NZRconsulting Track drying fast, removing standing water #SaoPauloIndy300

SBPopOffValve PopOffValve.com - You know, of course, that they're doing this on purpose to get us psyched up for Indy. #maybenot

DRRIndyCar DRRIndyCar - Bia and her crew chief Chris during the rain delay http://twitpic.com/4s17or

MoreFrontWing More Front Wing - [MFW Update] Trump at IMS: a public relations disaster http://bit.ly/ifRopZ @IndyCar

tomasscheckter Tomas Scheckter - People in brazil think that indycar drivers in rain is like watching front line of the football team playing twister #embaressing

openpaddock Openpaddock.net - over/under on Viso being the first out after restart?...

Newman_Haas Newman Haas Racing - If there were travel issues for some getting here, there are surely more to come. First bus is leaving for the airport in 2.5 hrs. Empty?

indy44 Matt Archuleta - For your rain delay entertainment http://youtu.be/NgI_ury1Rpg #PaulNewman #IndyCar

DRRIndyCar DRRIndyCar - We're hearing about 20 minutes until we go back racing - depending on the weather.

SpeedJournal SpeedJournal - (IndyCar) Power secures Penske's 200th all-time pole http://bit.ly/laWMAQ #autoracing

SpeedJournal SpeedJournal - (IndyCar) Sao Paulo circuit 'hot spots' http://bit.ly/mc0zKD #autoracing

indy44 Matt Archuleta - Sure sounded like it. RT @99forever: Wait -- did Dario just say that Helio's trip into the fence was Helio's fault after all? #indycar

TheEDJE Edmund Jenks - Dario Franchitti says that they would love to go back to racing if it does not rain anymore! A vote to STOP the race. Radio is signing off.

VersusIndyCar Versus IndyCar - "I've never seen spray that bad" - Dario Franchitti #indycar

DRRIndyCar DRRIndyCar - This is why @VersusIndyCar rocks! RT @IndyCar: Versus will stay with us for the duration of the race. Listen in at http://bit.ly/9oshb1

Andretti26 Marco Andretti - Let's go!

indy44 Matt Archuleta - RT @Jbindy4: I wonder what the league is going to do? It gets dark in Sao paulo by 5:30. Its 3:30 there now. #IndyCar

SBPopOffValve PopOffValve.com - This has officially passed the CCWS Surfers race as the worst street race of all time.

VersusIndyCar Versus IndyCar - What we are hearing is that it will be about 15 minutes until the drivers will be to their cars #indycar

Andretti arruma carro de Danica Patrick, que sofreu acidente logo depois da largada da prova. Caption & Image Credit: @firestone_indy

FollowAndretti Andretti Autosport - A pic of the @GoDaddy car in the garage earlier, via @firestone_indy http://twitpic.com/4s0tvi

IndyCarPR INDYCAR PR - Race Control. Push out to pit lane. Cars will be start in their running order.

[Time: 12:00 PST]

FollowAndretti Andretti Autosport - Thanks to all of our fans here in Sao Paulo for sticking with us in the rain... appreciate the support. Should be back out in 10-15 mins.

IndyCarPR INDYCAR PR - Race Control: Drivers restart your engines.

TheEDJE Edmund Jenks - After nearly a two and a half hour rain delay – cars take to the track under YELLOW Flag – laps will count.

tomasscheckter Tomas Scheckter - Whooop whooop. Let's get this party started.

IndyCar IZOD IndyCar Series - Cars are leaving pit lane now. Yellow flag until conditions are acceptable according to the drivers.

CrashGladys Crash Gladys - But think about the new audience #IndyCar can attract w/ the first headline of the race, "Simona gets on top of Danica!" Girl on girl, baby

estradawriting Christopher Estrada by indy44 - IMS Radio: Barnhart says we'll run a bunch of laps in yellow. Davey Hamilton on pit road says that amount could be up to 20 laps.

TheEDJE Edmund Jenks - IMS Radio speculation - If they run enough YELLOW Flag laps the race could be "called" final when they reach 38 laps.

DRRIndyCar DRRIndyCar - Red flag again

Fieldof33 Paul Dalbey - Damn... :-/

tomasscheckter Tomas Scheckter - No no no no no no no no no!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

CrashGladys Crash Gladys - Or postponed I should say... answer me this, tho... how come #F1 can race in these extreme wet conditions and not #IndyCar? Tire issue maybe

IndyCar IZOD IndyCar Series - Cars are back on pitlane. Drives climbing out. Stay tuned for updates.

FollowAndretti Andretti Autosport - Covering cars. Race control says we can't work on the cars. Race postponed until tomorrow at 1 p.m. ET. #indycar

VersusIndyCar Versus IndyCar - We are postponing the race until tomorrow. We will be on air at 1 p.m. #indycar

indy44 Matt Archuleta - Wait what, drivers not getting out of their cars. Guess they still want to race. #IndyCar

pressdog Bill Zahren - @spikerogan I'd vote for just starting over tomorrow, put everyone back on the grid and get 'er done.

IndyRacingNut Tony Wittrien - @pressdog @spikerogan It's supposed to be raining all day tomorrow too. Just pack it up and go home, I say. Come back in Sept/Oct.

indy44 Matt Archuleta - I bet they run the minimum amount of laps to get race in. Under yellow or not. Teams and drivers have spoken. #IndyCar

PantherRacing Panther Racing - Hildebrand has just suggested a drifting competition for the remainder of the day ..... race winner determined by fan vote. Whatcha think?

pressdog Bill Zahren - RT @lindythackston: RT @IndyCar: We have not postponed the race. We apologize for the confusion. Stay Tuned: We will have an update shortly.

tracksideonline TrackSide Online - Brazil - Sunday - Race postponed until Monday: http://bit.ly/lHgGwx

The 12 Verizon car and the 6 Penske Logistics car wait under the red flag in Sao Paulo. Caption & Image Credit: Penske Racing (2011)

Order for restart of race on May 2, 2011

Start Order | Car# | Driver | Laps | Comment
1 27 Conway 13 - Will be waived around before restart
2 12 Power 14
3 6 Briscoe 14
4 5 Sato 14
5 38 Rahal 14
6 10 Franchitti 14
7 26 Andretti 14
8 83 Kimball 14
9 77 Tagliani 14
10 2 Servia 14
11 34 Saavedra 14
12 59 Viso 14
13 9 Dixon 14
14 18 Jakes 14
15 06 Hinchcliffe 14
16 24 Beatriz 14
17 4 Hildebrand 14
18 22 Wilson 14
19 17 Matos 14
20 19 Bourdais 14
21 14 Meira 12
22 28 Hunter-Reay 12
23 3 Castroneves 5
24 78 de Silvestro 5
25 7 Patrick 5
26 82 Kanaan 5

'Till tomorrow, this is ...

... notes from The EDJE

Tweet-By-Tweet Round #4 Race - The Itaipava Sao Paulo Indy 300 presented by Nestle - RESTART Day 2 - May 2, 2011

FirestoneRacing Firestone Racing -Remember, though, since #indycar race started wet yesterday, the alternate/primary tire rule been tossed out with the rain water.

IndyCar IZOD IndyCar Series - Cars are on the grid, drivers are strapped in. We're getting ready to go racing! Follow along here http://bit.ly/9oshb1

VersusIndyCar Versus IndyCar - Drivers have started their engines. That's a good sign. #letsdothis #indycar

IndyCarPR INDYCAR PR - RT @FirestoneRacing: All cars restarting race on @firestoneracing alternate (red) tires. All on new reds except 19, 28, 22, 06, 2 and 10.

FirestoneRacing Firestone Racing - As cars pull away, raindrops in pit lane @SaoPauloIndy300 #indycar

IndyCarPR INDYCAR PR -Cars are rolling on the grid. Conway has been waved around. We should be green next time by. Follow @indycar for in race action.

TheEDJE Edmund Jenks - GREEN, GREEN, GREEN – Restart of the Itaipava Sao Paulo Indy 300 presented by Nestle

IndyCar IZOD IndyCar Series - Green Flag! http://bit.ly/9oshb1

DRRIndyCar DRRIndyCar - Pit stop for @JustinWilson22 http://twitpic.com/4sc662

sidepodcast Sidepodcast F1 - indycar is go again, we're commenting here: http://sidepodcast.com

indy44 Matt Archuleta - Let the passing begin. Dario around Rahal. #IndyCar

shagers Shane Rogers - It's REAL low grip. Helio tippytoed less on Dancing with the Stars.

IndyCar IZOD IndyCar Series - All 26 cars roll to pit lane to change to Wet tires

VersusIndyCar Versus IndyCar - the rain has began, everyone into pits

PCaporali Pat Caporali - Alright #IndyCar tweeps looking for a video fix... here's what I have: http://www.justin.tv/besweeet#/w/1153382704 #Brazil

SpeedJournal SpeedJournal - (IndyCar) Race resumes on streets of Sao Paulo http://bit.ly/iPuwJm #autoracing

IndyCar IZOD IndyCar Series - Will Power has a very close call with the outside wall. Gathered the car up, no contact.

IndyCar IZOD IndyCar Series - Sebastien Bourdais in the tires. Full Course Yellow

AllenWedge Allen Wedge - Bourdais slid but stopped in front of tires, but blocking course so FCY. looks like RHR spun by himself

Dale_Nixon Dale Nixon - So much for Sebastien Bourdais being a "master of wet conditions"

indy44 Matt Archuleta - RHR into barrier, has rear wing damage. #IndyCar

ConquestRacing Conquest Racing - Caution out on lap 21 for Bourdais in the tires.

PippaMann Pippa Mann - I picked Bourdais as being in with a chance of a good race yesterday... That probably makes his mistake my fault!! #CurseOfTheCommentator!!

FollowAndretti Andretti Autosport - #28 car coming in for a new wing... will most likely have to use one from #27 car. #sharing

IndyCar IZOD IndyCar Series - Current Top 10 - Power, Sato, Briscoe, Franchitti, Andretti, Rahal, Viso, Dixon, Servia, Wilson

pressdog Bill Zahren - Festival of Yellow Laps

indy44 Matt Archuleta - Bourdais out of car and in pits sipping a macchiato. #IndyCar

shagers Shane Rogers - People are going to stretch to one stop, you just don't know how long this race will go with Yellow and slow laps on wets. #indycar

IndyCar IZOD IndyCar Series - We're coming to the green! Follow along at http://bit.ly/9oshb1

FollowAndretti Andretti Autosport - Still on yellow flag... Marco 5th, Mike 17th, RHR 22nd, Danica 26th. About an hour left on the clock.

shagers Shane Rogers - RHR running with Conway's rear wing. Takes "runing teammate's setup" to a whole new level! #indycar

indy44 Matt Archuleta - P1 WP P2 TS P3 RB P4 DF P5 MA P6 GR P7 EV P8 SD P9 OS P10 JW P11 JR P12 AT P13 SS P14 JH P15 AB P16 RM P17 MC P18 JJ P19 CK P20 VM

99forever Steph@MoreFrontWing - Nice to see them behaving on the restarts. Sato takes the lead! #indycar

FollowAndretti Andretti Autosport - Green flag!

IndyRacingNut Tony Wittrien

GO SATO GO!!! Use that F1 experience and win a damn race for once!!!!!

IndyCar IZOD IndyCar Series - Full Course Yellow

indy44 Matt Archuleta - Sato takes lead, huge rooster tails. Sato slides it, stays under control. #IndyCar

FollowAndretti Andretti Autosport - Yellow for Rahal. Still quite wet out there on the track.

indy44 Matt Archuleta - Yellow for Rahal spin. #IndyCar

AllenWedge Allen Wedge - Wow Sato brilliant move to the lead on that restart, hope he can keep it through this next restart, shame they had to go FCY for debris

shagers Shane Rogers - You can't penalise Dario for that, Briscoe hit the kerb and Dario was taking avoiding action. #indycar

IndyRacingNut Tony Wittrien - @pjchesson Let's hope Sato can draw on his F1 experience and win this damn race!! :)

Themayor911 Steve Marengo - by AllenWedge If Sato holds the lead and wins he will make history today. Sato will be the first Japanese to win a Major Open Wheel Series Race!

shagers Shane Rogers - It was actually a good bit of driving by Dario, he saw Briscoe come across and moved over to avoid the accident. #indycar

AllenWedge Allen Wedge - ditto, they've been great all race RT: @indy44: That last double file restart was magnificent Didn't think I'd be saying that today #IndyCar

pressdog Bill Zahren - Should start a pool on how many laps til next FCY. 4?

indy44 Matt Archuleta - RT @Newman_Haas: 11 more laps to 1/2 mark (official race; full points). 1 to go at line. #IndyCar

AllenWedge Allen Wedge - Conway has very quietly made his wall all the way back to 14th in these few short laps since going down to 21st from 3rd, sound familiar?

indy44 Matt Archuleta - Viso P6 +20 spots. #IndyCar

PippaMann Pippa Mann - This is turning into a pretty good race right now!!! Wish we were able to broadcast it live here in the UK!!! #Indycar

ConquestRacing Conquest Racing - No. 34 car improves to 11th.

AllenWedge Allen Wedge - Conway is up to 12th, can we please get a on-board camera on him already #IndyCar

pressdog Bill Zahren - Wonder if Bernard did some all caps German screaming that led to the good restarts or the drivers just saw the super fuggly tape of LB

shagers Shane Rogers - Looks like Penske went closer to all dry on the setup, KV closer to all wet. The story of the race. #indycar

IndyCar IZOD IndyCar Series - Current Top 10 [lap 30 of 75] - Sato, Power, Andretti, Franchitti, Servia, Viso, Briscoe, Dixon, Hildebrand, Tagliani

Fieldof33 Paul Dalbey - Aren't those curbs about 4" tall? Not sure how a driver would straddle one in these cars.

indy44 Matt Archuleta - P1 TS P2 WP P3 MA P4 DF P5 OS P6 EV P7 RB P8 SD P9 JR P10 AT #IndyCar

IndyCar IZOD IndyCar Series - Franchitti makes hard contact with the tires in the Turn 1 run off

PippaMann Pippa Mann -So Sato, Andretti, Viso and Saavedra have not stopped... This could get interesting!! Go @ConquestRacing currently in P4!!!!!

IndyCar IZOD IndyCar Series - Viso passes Andretti for 2nd. KV Racing is 1-2!

briankelly_ Brian Kelly - Would be nice to see someone other than Will Power win a road race. #indycar

MVBN15 MVBN15 - Mike King can kiss my ass, Simona is 7 tenths a second faster than Marco. What else is she supposed to do? #Indycar

indy44 Matt Archuleta - Viso and Marco running second and third makes me nervous. #IndyCar

indy44 Matt Archuleta - Michael Andretti told race control Viso blocking. #IndyCar

LewisFranck Lewis Franck - Michael Andretti on the battle betweeen his son and "Viso was blocking." #IndyCar officials blackflagging Viso.

NeilHudson Neil Hudson - Ouch, black flag for EJ Viso #indycar

99forever Steph@MoreFrontWing - I actually agree with black flagging Viso. He was doing quite a bit of blocking -- was wondering why he was getting away with it. #indycar

IndyCarRules Scott Barton - Black flag for Viso for blocking. That's a punch in the gut! #IndyCar

IndyCarGarage IndyCar Garage - @12WillPower is charging , now up to p5 #INDYCAR

The_Lap_Times James - In any racing only driving serpentine down a straight is blocking - not defending - that's just defending #indycar

icthyes_f1 Icthyes - Hard luck for Viso, just hope nothing happens to Sato #indycar

shagers Shane Rogers - The Viso call is consistent with the past. Fair enough. #indycar

Wiresculptress Kristine Schroeder - Viso must have pissed in someone's Wheaties. Someone important. Black flag is heavy handed.

curtisboggs curtis boggs - I don't know what the answer is, but I hate #IndyCar's "blocking" rules.

ronfrankl Ron Frankl - For those not watching, #IndyCar race will be a timed race and will end in less than 20 min. It's been raining again & been a messy race.

estradawriting Christopher Estrada - WOW, that's a crushing blow for KV-Lotus. And this fuel gamble may not pay off for 5-Sato if it stays green.

FollowAndretti Andretti Autosport - Marco: "My dash is out." Michael: "Hang in there without it." (Marco can't see any in-car info)

shagers Shane Rogers - The drying track is bringing this race back to @12WillPower.

damonsmedley Damon Smedley - I really don't like these twisty onboard cameras. One facing the front and one facing the back would be nicer.

LewisFranck Lewis Franck - Hey tv just caught up with my comment on Simona's speed. If you have racecontrol you can watch this, too.

moon089 Marcos Arancibia - #IndyCar: EJViso had a drive-through. Andretti is 2nd and Sebastian Saavedra is 3rd!

tonydizinno Tony DiZinno - Never thought I'd say this but want a yellow to preserve the current top 3 [Sato, Andretti, & Saavedra]. Just for the shock result.

Krustylicious Taras Dhedhi - Between Sato and Andretti, with Saavedra with a chance

trill100 Sara Gruber - Marco, there's less than 20 minutes, and you're 2nd. Keep that up, at least. But maybe pass Sato? Please?

99forever Steph@MoreFrontWing - Sato.. Andretti.. Saavedra.. how ticked are you guys going to be if strategy leads to Will winning it anyway?

sentoan Aficionado al Motor - a 15 del final: 1 Sato, 2 Andretti, 3 Saavedra, 4 Power, 5 Rahal, 6 Briscoe, 7 Franchitti, 8 Servia, 9 Viso, 10 Conway

whatimthinking Meesh Beer - true dat RT @tonydizinno: Can't wait for the bitchfest to begin after that call on Viso ... Mikey's Fine Whinery prevails.

Krustylicious Taras Dhedhi - typical will power takes 3rd spot .

estradawriting Christopher Estrada - OK, apparently there's just enough time for six laps...14:30 remaining. 12-Power to P3

shagers Shane Rogers - Will Power is getting faster and faster relative to Sato. If this stays green, he's P1

TheEDJE Edmund Jenks – Fuel strategy will put the nail into the KV Racing Technology coffin - it’s Power, Rahal, Briscoe on the podium – bank it!

SkittleCar1 Jeremy Carpenter - Will Power seems to be working his way through the field.

RacerDudes Diana @RacerDudes - wow - Twilight Zone! RT @ALMSChicks: Top five are Sato, Andretti, Viso, Saavedra, and Jakes

EJGoose Evan Jones - Marco coming in to pit.

Corvettettops Derek Harkema - Drive hard and listen to radio communication kid RT @IndyCar: Marco Andretti has lost all data on his dash

indy44 Matt Archuleta - Here comes Power P3

melanie8771 Melanie Mizenko - Marco's in pit. Change tires to slicks. Let's go #26

EJGoose Evan Jones - Slicks. This won't end well for Marco.

99forever Steph@MoreFrontWing - Reds on Andretti?! Now that's VERY interesting!

mjweinstein Michael Weinstein - Thanks to lindythackston for the twitter updates as I take the train to work. Sounds like I'm missing a great #IndyCar race!!

Racing_Observer Matt Weaver - Taku will not have enough fuel - coming down pit lane soon. Will Power will lead.

BrunoTarulli34 Bruno Tarulli - #IndyCar Sato en pits. Power toma la punta.

estradawriting Christopher Estrada

12-Power last pitted on Lap 36. He takes over the point with just 10 minutes to go.

craig_steele Craig Steele - - 1:49 for Andretti on first full lap on slicks. Bad call.

indy44 Matt Archuleta - Bummed for Sato, ran hell of a race. #KV #IndyCar

brownie9999 Andrew Browne - @12WillPower @penskeracing go power! 8 minutes to go.

Racing5 Racing5 - P1 Power P2 Rahal P3 Briscoe.. quedan 7 minutos.

TheEDJE Edmund Jenks – BANKED … this should last until the end unless a cloudburst or … blocking happens!

barbar3la Barbara AJ Ramathon - Is Danica still running?

FollowAndretti Andretti Autosport - Less than 10 mins left in timed race... Conway 6th, Andretti 15th, Hunter-Reay 18th, Patrick 23^rd

shagers Shane Rogers - 5 laps to go unless we get yellow.

ambercleveland Amber Cleveland - RT @indy44: Top 10 P1 WP P2 GR P3 RB P4 DF P5 OS P6 TS P7 MC P8 JW P9 JH P10 JR

hunt_james Jaime Lalinde - 5 more minutes for the checkered flag

indy44 Matt Archuleta - Sato off track in turn one. Back on.

SkittleCar1 Jeremy Carpenter - @TJIngerson Wow....good strategery by Team Penske.

estradawriting Christopher Estrada - Sato goes into the T1 runoff, loses a few spots but stays in Top 10.

f1fanatic_co_uk F1 Fanatic - Power leading, Sato down to eighth after his pit stop, no doubt wondering why KV didn't pit him when everyone else came in.

craig_steele Craig Steele - - Three laps to go.

IndyRacingNut Tony Wittrien - How is Dario in 4th after spending so much time in the tires???

indy44 Matt Archuleta - 3 min left disregard white flag

damonsmedley Damon Smedley - Takuma Sato has thoroughly disappointed me tonight. I really thought he could win it! :(

R_D_Manning Roger Manning - @simdesilvestro Wow what if you had not been punted on the start, amazing run today ;)

IndyRacingNut Tony Wittrien - Drive of the race goes to BOTH Sato & Viso. If this wasn't a timed race, Sato might have pulled this one off... #IndyCar C'est la vie. :(

TheEDJE Edmund Jenks – Drives of this race (both editions) to Will Power, Graham Rahal for surviving the wet and the crashes, and … Mike Conway to 6^th from 20^th.

Scott_Joslin_F1 Scott Joslin - I used to consider #Indycar a viable alternative to top level racing to #F1, but now it's more like WWF Wrestling.

Dale_Nixon Dale Nixon - #RaceControl "#Deathstar has repelled the rebel forces; which are retreating in disarray"

xemafuentes Xema Fuentes - Crazy #IndyCar race. That's racing!

ronfrankl Ron Frankl - Wow. Fastest lap of race turned by Simona DeSilvestro.

estradawriting Christopher Estrada - The strategy backfires for KV-Lotus and 12-Power is heading to Indy with the championship lead.

AllenWedge Allen Wedge - This race was the polar opposite of Long Beach, highly entertaining race, boring end/result; still good Monday morning though.

riiseuk Carl - I don't like American commentators, time too turn off the #IndyCar stream, Just saw Bourdais' name and chuckled slightly.

_alanstewart Alan Stewart - Will Power wins his fourth pole and second race of 2011 at São Paulo Indy 300. Now let's head to @IMS and the 100th running of the #indy500!!!

andhesonit Johnny Montona - wham-BAM @GrahamRahal @SC_Racing & @CGRTeams finish P2 in the #IndyCar #SaoPauloIndy300.

99forever Steph@MoreFrontWing - Well, that kinda went in with a bang and out with a fizzle, didn't it? Ah, well. :)

lookingspiffy lookingspiffy - Meh. MEH MEH MEH. *waves Taku flag forlornly*

BrunoTarulli34 Bruno Tarulli - #IndyCar Will Power gana por segunda vez en Sao Paulo. Rahal queda segundo y Briscoe finaliza en tercero.

ronfrankl Ron Frankl - Will Power wins rain-plagued IndyCar race in San Paolo. Rahal 2nd, Briscoe 3rd.

AustMotorsports AusMotorsportNews - #IndyCar: Australian @12WillPower crosses the line to win IZOD Brazilian IndyCar 300 race. Aussie @RyanBriscoe6 drove home in 3rd spot.

djcraske David Craske - Well ... I was entertained. Yes, Power won, but it was a good drive staying outta trouble. Lotta good #IndyCar stories in this one

pressdog Bill Zahren - ZING! RT @KelseyUSA: First interview without a major complaint from Graham Rahal.

WilliamMazeo William Mazeo - @pressdog this race will shut up many #IndyCar haters, won't it? Good race!

KelseyUSA Kelsey - @whatimthinking @pressdog there has to be a complainer every race, right? lol

IndySoupdotcom Chris Sheridan - Power and Dario are walking away with the championship...again - #INDYCAR live on http://livestream.com/INDYCARRadio

99forever Steph@MoreFrontWing - That pass by Sato was worth watching the entire race for. What a beautiful move! He seems to be coming into his own this year.

wolkenjaeger Tristan Hauser - Congrats to the HVM team and Simona for the 1:39:823

Mistyuk11 Karen Barrett - Great race from @Mikeconwayindy starting at the back & finishing 6th - well done to @dariofranchitti for solid points in 4th :-)

Shu1T Shu - なんか良く分からないけどWillPowerトップか。。 #indycar

estradawriting Christopher Estrada - Top 10: Power, Rahal, Briscoe, Franchitti, Servia, Conway, Wilson, Sato, Hinchcliffe, Hildebrand.

All in all, the top 10 are nothing but survivors with luck and a good strategy for the Itaipava Sao Paulo Indy 300 presented by Nestle!!

Of the top ten in Brazil, only Briscoe & Franchitti are long-time IRL drivers. God bless rookies, transferees from other racing series and, of course, the former ChampCar contingent (Power, Rahal, Servia, and Wilson).

Full Finishing Order

... notes from The EDJE

IndyCar Round #4 - Itaipava Sao Paulo Indy 300 presented by Nestle

Click each FLAG to launch information about IndyCar Round #4 - Itaipava Sao Paulo Indy 300 presented by Nestle. Digital Asset Credit: IndyCar.com

IndyCar Round #4 - Itaipava Sao Paulo Indy 300 presented by Nestle

A very exciting and competitive season start to 2011 to say the least.

Ok, complain that there was some predictability through the first street and road course races, in that, the first race through the streets of St. Petersburg was dominated by last year's championship winner, Dario Franchitti, and that the second race on the dedicated road course through the rolling landscape at Barber in Alabama was dominated by last year's inaugural Mario Andretti trophy for dominance in road and street courses, and 2011 Championship runner-up, Will Power but the level of competition and the mix of drivers and teams that have shown great promise have increased in this fourth year since American open-wheel racing became unified (and this last year of the old Dallara chassis).

Take the third contest through the streets of Long Beach ... it was won by six seconds by someone who started the last Yellow Flag caution period in P6. Mike Conway ran and qualified fairly well most all weekend, but no one had anything for him at the end of the race where he conserved his car and unleashed it with about 17 laps to go to end with a dominating win. Qualifications had four of the top six spots filled with three former ChampCar Series drivers with Power - P1, Servia - P4 and Wilson - P5 ... and one European transferee from England, Mike Conway in P3.

In the ICS Championship points race going into Round #4, we see a pattern developing because as it was in qualifications at Long Beach, four of the top six places are occupied by three former ChampCar Series drivers with Power - P2, Servia - P4 and Tagliani - P6 ... and one European transferee from England, Mike Conway in P5.

Day one of Round #4 down in Brazil, this trend of competition in the old Dallara chassis, continues. Ryan Briscoe sets early fastest laps in the first practice session of the day at 01:25.1072 - 107.272mph. The top pacesetters followed with teammate Will Power - 01:25.1421 - 107.228mph - 0.0349 difference / Ryan Hunter-Reay / Helio Castroneves / Justin Wilson / Dario Franchitti round out the top six. Mike Conway, Round #3 winner at Long Beach ended up in the middle of the first session order in P12 at 01:25.7720 - 106.440mph at over a half-a-second off of the pace at 0.6648 behind.
[Session 1 Results]

Round #4 second practice session yields a surprise fast lap by HVM driver, Swiss born Simona de Silvestro. She was able be the second fastest of the session behind Will Power (01:24.151 - 108.491, nearly a second faster than practice session #1) at 1:24.231. Scott Dixon / Ryan Hunter-Reay / Dario Franchitti / Helio Castroneves round out the top six. Knock out qualifications begin via live Timing & Scoring with the augmented IMS Radio Network call on indycar.com at 2 p.m. (ET). VERSUS' coverage begins at 6 p.m. (ET).
[Session #2 Results]

Firestone Fast Six Qualifying - this excerpted and edited from indycar.com -

Will Power earned his fourth consecutive PEAK Performance Pole Award of the season and gave Penske Racing its 200th Indy car pole in the Firestone Fast Six qualifying for theItaipava São Paulo Indy 300 presented by Nestle.

Power, driving the No. 12 Verizon Team Penske car, set the track record of 1 minute, 1.8958 seconds with three minutes left in the 10-minute shootout on the 2.536-mile, 11-turn street circuit.

Like at Long Beach two weeks earlier, Ryan Hunter-Reay will join Power on the front row. They finished 1-2 in the inuagural IZOD IndyCar Series race in Brazil, with Power starting the 2010 season with the victory.

Scott Dixon and Ryan Briscoe will share Row 2, while Graham Rahal and Dario Franchitti will be on the third row for the 75-lap race (noon ET on VERSUS). It's the best start of the season for Rahal, driving the No. 38 car for Service Central Chip Ganassi Racing.

Of note

Vitor Meira, who finished third in the 2010 race, missed advancing to Segment 2 by 0.0647 of a second – the third time this season (gaps of 0.0091 of a second at St. Petersburg and 0.1937 of a second at Long Beach). … Sebastien Bourdais, completing his initial road/street course stint of the season with Dale Coyne Racing, will start a season-high 12th in the No. 19 Boy Scouts of America car. … Eight different teams were represented in 12-car Segment 2. … James Hinchcliffe bumped Simona de Silvestro, who posted the second-quickest lap in practice, from advancing to Segment 2 on his final lap.

[Full Results]

... and Mike Conway, the third different winner in as many races? ... he will be starting inside row 5 in P9, his best position of the weekend.

Schedule of events HERE.

... notes from The EDJE

Andretti Impact On Long Beach Grows With Conway IndyCar Win

Mike Conway gets first IndyCar Series win while giving Andretti Autosport its second win in a row at the Toyota Grand Prix Of Long Beach. Image Credit: Jeff Lewis/Grand Prix Association of Long Beach (2011)

Andretti Impact On Long Beach Grows With Conway IndyCar Win

The Andretti family and the Toyota Grand Prix Of Long Beach almost have a charge of destiny about them when spring comes around here in the Los Angeles basin. Mario Andretti showed an American face during the Formula 1 years and in 1977, at Long Beach, when he became the only American to win the United States Grand Prix West. He went on to win four times while driving for Newman/Haas in 1984, 1985, 1987, and 1988. Michael Andretti won at Long Beach as a driver for Kraco Racing in 1986, Newman/Haas in 2002, further owned/fielded the winning cars in 2010 (Hunter-Raey) and now ... 2011 (with Conway).

Take for example this latest round of the 37th edition of a temporary street race that set the standard of bringing the track to the people as opposed to having the people travel to a dedicated track. Last year, Andretti Autosport, and Michael Andretti specifically, were very confident that they would have the car and driver to win the event. Ryan Hunter-Raey delivered on the pre-event near prediction at the Long Beach Motorsports Walk-Of-Fame by Michael that Ryan would win the race.

Ryan Hunter-Raey as he negotiates his way to position 2 and feels poised to win the race. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2011)

This year looked as though the Andretti Autosport driver would repeat as Hunter-Raey had strong practice, qualifying sessions throughout the weekend, and running at the top of the order in second late in the race, behind Penske Racing's Ryan Briscoe ... only to have to retire with transmission problems with 13 laps left.

Enter Mike Conway ... Conway claimed his first IndyCar Series race victory with a late charge despite tumbling down the order with an ugly first pitstop. Conway worked his way back through the field and on what turned out to be the last Yellow Flag restart of the race, he was sixth behind Briscoe leading fellow teammate Hunter-Reay, Franchitti, Alex Tagliani (Sam Schmidt), Hinchcliffe (Newman/Haas) as the green came out. Conway quickly passed Hinchcliff and Tagliani on Shoreline Drive at the restart, picked up another place when Hunter-Reay's car slowed with its gearbox problem, then was able to dispatch Franchitti and Briscoe in quick succession to take the lead. It turns out that Conway was able to keep his tires cleaner during the Yellow Flag caution period making the dirty tires of Franchitti and Briscoe open for clean and easy overtakes. Once ahead, Conway, on his clean tires, decisively stormed away from the field, going on to win by 6 seconds as Briscoe held off Franchitti for second.

Ryan Briscoe ends up in P2 after being passed by Mike Conway on the last Yellow Flag restart. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2011)

Audio Of Post Race Podium Press Conference For The 37th Toyota Grand Prix Of Long Beach
(P2 - Ryan Briscoe & P3 - Dario Franchitti - Begin to 12:58 | Michael Andretti & P1 - Mike Conway - 13:00 to End at 24:13 ... file is launchable & downloadable)

At the post race press conference, Michael Andretti, team owner of Andretti Autosport, expressed his confidence in not only adding Conway to his team but the future prospects of Mike Conway for the season.

"I think Mike showed a lot of signs of brilliance last year at the beginning of the season and then unfortunately had his accident," Michael Andretti said. "Coming back, I had no question in my mind. I personally felt like he was going to be hungrier than ever, and that's exactly the way it came about."
----
"I never felt like it was taking a chance. I was so happy that we were able to put a deal together with Mike because I wanted him all the way from the end of last year."
----
"I was very happy because I felt like he was going to be a great addition to the team - not only as a great talent, but he just fits in with the other three drivers, which is quite important to have that chemistry."

And I think we have a great chemistry right now between the drivers, and because of that, I feel really good about the rest of this year. I think we're going to be strong."

Andretti did admit he wasn't expecting Conway to win the race, conceding that he was happy with the prospect of the Brit at being poised to finish in the top six on the last restart.

"It was crazy and I've got to admit unexpected," Andretti said. "It's so difficult to pass here, so I was really happy to see Mike up in the top six, and I thought that's not bad. At that point we were feeling good about where Ryan was and then all of a sudden Ryan has this (gearbox) problem. I was thinking, 'Oh, man, this is over.'

"And then, all of a sudden, everybody starts cheering, and I'm thinking, 'What are they cheering about?' Mike is like, boom, going past Dario (Franchitti), and next thing you know he's past (Ryan) Briscoe. Unbelievable."

Find more photos like this on IndyCar Garage

Audio Of Question Asked Of Michael Andretti About Prospects At Long Beach 2012

At the end of the press conference one felt that that this Andretti charge of destiny with Long Beach just might end up as a Three-Peat for Michael and his team come 2012 when the 38th Toyota Grand Prix Of Long Beach will be held once again when spring comes back around here in the Los Angeles basin.

... notes from The EDJE

ALMS at Long Beach 2011 - 12 cyl. power gives new meaning to muscle at "Muscle Milk"

Muscle Milk collected its first American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón win under the Aston Martin Racing banner Saturday as Lucas Luhr made an opening-lap pass on Dyson Racing’s Chris Dyson. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2011)

Tequila Patron ALMS At Long Beach - Rounnd 2
12 cylinder power gives a new meaning to the muscle at "Muscle Milk"

In qualifications, the lead for the start of the race changed eight times between the two fastest cars in the American Le Mans Series 2011 season and the only two cars in the LMP1 classification.

At race start the race was ended with a first lap pass by the Muscle Milk Aston Martin driven by Lucas Luhr on the series points leading Dyson Racing Mazda/Lola driven by Chris Dyson. After a long caution period which started soon (lap #3) after the turn #6 pass for the lead, the lead never change as the Muscle of the 12 cylinder engine of the Aston Martin pulled ahead by nearly a lap before a race ending crash with about eight minutes left had the race end on a Yellow Flag while the field took the Checkered Flag in parade behind a safety car.

Behind the two LMP1 class cars the story was very different, in that, the GT class was in a pitched battle in the first 31 laps as the Rahal Letterman Lanigan BMW's, the Corvette, and Patrick Long in the Flying Lizard factory Porsche duked it out while being as hooked-up as a train.

“My eyes were popping out of my head but that’s how street racing is,” said Joey Hand, driver of the RLL BMW M3 GT at the post race. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2011)

Full Audio Of Post Race Press Conference
(moderated by Bob Dickinson - ALMS Vice President Public Relations/Media Services - Running Time: 34min. 52sec.)

This excerpted and edited The American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón -

MUSCLE MILK SCORES LONG BEACH WIN AHEAD OF EPIC GT BATTLE
Opening lap pass gives Luhr/Graf win while BMW makes it two in a row in GT

Shortly after Luhr’s pass for the lead, attention turned to a furious GT battle led by Joey Hand in the BMW Team RLL BMW M3 GT. While leading the Porsche 911 GT3 RSR of Patrick Long and the Corvette Racing Chevrolet Corvette C6.R of Oliver Gavin, Hand was caught out by teammate Bill Auberlen, who spun in Turn 2 just before the 30-minute mark and blocked the course as the GT leaders came back around. Gavin seized the moment, promoting his Corvette into the lead on lap 44.

“My eyes were popping out of my head but that’s how street racing is,” Hand said. “The incident with Bill was interesting. I went to the right and he went to the right. It wasn’t his fault because he couldn’t see me.”

GTC traffic came into play next when Long attempted to use one of the slower cars for a pick on Gavin in an attempt to take the lead 10 minutes later at Turn 7. Hand, who had fallen to third, anticipated the move and passed both Gavin and Long to move back into the GT lead. Long used the Porsche’s power to get back around Hand coming out of the final turn but that lead was short-lived. On lap 31 and after dispatching the Extreme Speed Motorsports Ferrari 458 Italia of Scott Sharp - which had just completed its first pit stop - Long made contact with the Turn 9 wall, damaging the suspension and sending the car to pit lane and an eventual retirement. Hand retook the lead, and a flawless pit stop for the BMW Team RLL ensured Dirk Mueller was in position to take the team’s second consecutive win.
----
The full-course caution came out with less than eight minutes remaining in the race after two GTC Porsches made contact on the backstretch, leaving a car stranded at Turn Nine and a trail of fluid on the course.

The No. 4 Corvette finished second in the hands Magnussen, who set a new GT race lap record of 1:20.552 . Third place went to the hard-charging Risi Competizione Ferrari F458 Italia driven by Toni Vilander and Jaime Melo. The team was forced to start the car from the back of the grid after an accident in qualifying prevented Melo from entering a flying lap.

“If you don’t like ALMS GT racing, you don’t like racing,” Hand said of the thrilling GT race. “If I was a spectator, I’d love to see what is going on out there. At one point I was in third and Long was going to the inside of Gavin into a turn and I was thinking, ‘This isn’t going to work out for them.’ I race to put on a show for people watching at home, and I think that’s what we all did.”
----
In LMPC, polesitter CORE autosport faced off against Intersport Racing. The pivotal moment came on lap 56 when Gunnar Jeannette’s ORECA FLM09 passed Kyle Marcelli for the lead in Turn 1. It was the first win for the new LMPC team and defending Cooper Tires Prototype Lites championship team but the second in a row at Long Beach for Jeannette. Finishing third overall with Ricardo Gonzalez, Jeannette also set a new LMPC race lap record at Long Beach, a 1:18.620.

“I’m so happy to be up here for CORE autosport’s first win,” Jeannette said. “Ricardo did a fantastic job today and put in a monster first stint. We decided to take tires under green, and props to our guys for being able to do a four-tire change under green and get us out behind the Intersport car. I could catch him pretty easily and made the move. It’s never easy to win here at Long Beach and any street course in the ALMS. To have two wins here in a row, I have to pinch myself.”
----
Completing the LMPC podium with Intersport’s Marcelli and Tomy Drissi were Eric Lux and Elton Julian in the Genoa Racing ORECA FLM09.

Black Swan Racing, which had a rough debut at Long Beach last year, navigated the treacherous streets like veterans this year for its second straight GTC win of the season with Tim Pappas and Jeroen Bleekemolen behind the wheel of their Porsche 911 GT3 Cup entry.
----
Level 5 Motorsports the LMP2 winner, though the team elected to park the Lola-Honda coupe piloted by Scott Tucker and Christophe Bouchut after 45 laps.

“We’re running Le Mans and going to the Test Day next Sunday,” team owner Tucker explained. “One of our goals here was bringing the coupe, which is leaving in two hours. We decided this was the best thing to do in the overall picture.”
----
MICHELIN® GREEN X® Challenge honors went to LMP1 winner Muscle Milk Aston Martin Racing and GT winner BMW Team RLL.

The Tequila Patrón American Le Mans Series at Long Beach will be broadcast on ESPN2 from 5 to 7 p.m. ET on Sunday. Following the ESPN2 broadcast, the race will be available on demand at both ESPN3.com and americanlemans.com.

The American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón will take its traditional break for those teams preparing to race at the 24 Hours of Le Mans and return for Round 3, the American Le Mans Northeast Grand Prix at Lime Rock Park, on July 9. The race will be shown live and in its entirety on ESPN3.com in the United States and internationally on americanlemans.com starting at 1:05 p.m. ET. ESPN2 will provide television coverage from 1 to 3 p.m. ET on Sunday, July 10.

Tequila Patrón American Le Mans Series at Long Beach
Long Beach street circuit, Long Beach, Calif.
Saturday’s results
1. (2) Lucas Luhr, Monte Carlo; Klaus Graf, Dornham; AMR/ Lola Coupe B08 62 (1, LMP1), 83.
2. (1) Chris Dyson, Pleasant Valley, NY; Guy Smith, Bracken, Yorkshire; Lola B09 86/Mazda (2, LMP1), 83.
3. (3) Ricardo Gonzalez, Monterrey; Gunnar Jeannette, Salt Lake City, UT; Oreca FLM09 (1, LMPC), 81.
4. (4) Tomy Drissi, Los Angeles, CA; Kyle Marcelli, Barrie, ON; Oreca FLM09 (2, LMPC), 81.
5. (7) Joey Hand, Sacramento, CA; Dirk Mueller, Monte Carlo; BMW M3 GT (1, GT), 81.
6. (8) Oliver Gavin, Yardley Hastings; Jan Magnussen, Roskilde; Chevrolet Corvette C6 ZR1 (2, GT), 81.
7. (28) Toni Vilander, Kankaanpaa; Jaime Melo, Milan; Ferrari F458 Italia (3, GT), 81.
8. (11) Wolf Henzler, Nuertingen; Bryan Sellers, Braselton, GA; Porsche 911 GT3 RSR (4, GT), 80.
9. (6) Eric Lux, Jacksonville, FL; Elton Julian, Santa Monica, CA; Oreca FLM09 (3, LMPC), 80.
10. (15) Tommy Milner, Leesburg, VA; Olivier Beretta, Monte Carlo; Chevrolet Corvette C6 ZR1 (5, GT), 80.
11. (17) Jon Bennett, Fort Mill, SC; Frankie Montecalvo, Highlands, NJ; Oreca FLM09 (4, LMPC), 79.
12. (16) Bruno Junqueira, Brazil; Cristiano da Matta, Belo, Horizonte; Jaguar XKR (6, GT), 79.
13. (9) Bill Auberlen, Redondo Beach, CA; Dirk Werner, Kissenbrück; BMW M3 GT (7, GT), 79.
14. (26) Seth Neiman, San Francisco, CA; Darren Law, Phoenix, AZ; Porsche 911 GT3 RSR (8, GT), 78.
15. (19) Tim Pappas, Boston, MA; Jeroen Bleekemolen, Monte Carlo, ; Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (1, GTC), 77.
16. (13) Ed Brown, Las Vegas, NV; Guy Cosmo, West Palm Beach, FL; Ferrari F458 Italia (9, GT), 77.
17. (20) Bill Sweedler, Westport, CT; Leh Keen, Dublin, GA; Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (2, GTC), 77.
18. (5) Miles Maroney, Topanga, CA; Alex Figge, Denver, CO; Oreca FLM09 (5, LMPC), 77.
19. (23) John Potter, Salt Lake City, UT; Craig Stanton, Long Beach, CA; Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (3, GTC), 76.
20. (21) Dominik Schwager, Eisenhofen; Nicky Pastorelli, Rijswijk; Lamborghini Gallardo LP560-4 (10, GT), 75.
21. (27) Scott Blackett, Avon, CO; Nick Ham, Evergreen, CO; Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (4, GTC), 71.
22. (12) Johannes van Overbeek, San Francisco, CA; Scott Sharp, Jupiter, FL; Ferrari F458 Italia (11, GT), 70.
23. (25) Brendan Gaughan, Las Vegas, NV; Dion von Moltke, Coral Gables, FL; Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (5, GTC), 70.
24. (14) Sascha Maassen, Lontzen; Bryce Miller, Summit, NJ; Porsche 911 GT3 RSR (12, GT), 68.
25. (29) Scott Tucker, Leawood, KS; Christophe Bouchut, Paris; Lola Honda (13, LMP2), 45.
26. (22) Duncan Ende, Los Angeles, CA; Spencer Pumpelly, Mason Neck, VA; Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (6, GTC), 36.
27. (10) Patrick Long, Bellaire, FL; Joerg Bergmeister, Langenfield; Porsche 911 GT3 RSR (14, GT), 31.
28. (18) Paul Gentilozzi, Grand Ledge, MI; PJ Jones, Torrance, CA; Jaguar XKR (15, GT), 2.
29. (24) Bret Curtis, Valencia, CA; James Sofronas, Newport Beach, CA; Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (7, GTC), 2.
30. (30) Luis Diaz, Mexico City; Scott Tucker, Leawood, KS; Lola Honda (8, LMP2), 0.

Another great race for the books and history that is the Toyota Grand Prix Of Long Beach event. Two open-wheel races (IZOD IndyCar and Firestone Indy Lights) and two full-bodied multiple class races (Tequila Patron American Le Mans Series and Pirelli World Challenge Championships) make for a very memorable modern era rite of spring here in Long Beach during its 37th year of hosting this motor culture event icon.

... notes from The EDJE

Smith, Jeannette, Hand, and Bleekemolen Top ALMS Qualifying At Long Beach

P1 - Chris Dyson, Pleasant Valley, NY (US); Guy Smith, Bracken, Yorkshire (GB); Lola B09 86/Mazda (LMP1), 1:14.001, 179.998 [ctrl-click image for press conference slideshow]. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2011)

Smith, Jeannette, Hand, and Bleekemolen Top ALMS Qualifying At Long Beach

It was a classic and perfect day to have qualifications on the track laid out on the streets of the Shoreline Village area adjacent to downtown Long Beach. The sun was out with a very light afternoon breeze with the temperature approaching the low eighties when each of the classes in the American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón (LMP1, LMPC, GT, and GTC) took to the track at the end of a day of preparation.

One of the most dramatic duels just happened to be for top honors and P1 on the grid to start the race. Chris Dyson, owner and driver of the Dyson Racing Mazda-powered Lola coupe sponsored by G-Oil stated it best when he said, "You know, you need two cars to make a car race and let me tell ya' ... that it was touch and go."

In the pits, Chris communicates with Guy Smith as he concentrates at getting the most out of his Mazda but he could not tell him that the lead changed between the Mazda that the Muscle Milk 12 cylinder Aston Martin ... yes, the other car in the LMP1 class ... eight times during the fifteen minute qualification session.

AUDIO Of Post ALMS Qualification Press Interview HERE
(Length - 28 min. 24 sec. - GTC begin to 2:20/GT 2:20 - 6:03/LMPC 6:03 - 15:09/LMP1 15:09 - 28:24)

Other highlights included the following edited and excerpted from email issued by the American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón -

LMPC - Gunnar Jeannette took pole position in LMP Challenge for CORE autosport, the first for the rookie ALMS team. His lap of 1:17.736 (91.139 mph) in the ORECA FLM09 that he will share with Ricardo Gonzalez was only 0.388 seconds quicker than Kyle Marcelli in Intersport Racing’s entry. He will team with Tomy Drissi.

“We had both our cars on the podium at Sebring and now our first pole,” Jeannette said. “So obviously we’ll be looking for our first win Saturday. It will be crazy, that’s for sure. Because of the regulations, I’m actually losing distance to the GT cars on the straight. It will be difficult and our class is extremely competitive. I’ll do my best to stay clean and let things sort themselves out.”
----
GT - Joey Hand’s remarkable season continued with his second career ALMS pole position and first at Long Beach. The Californian set a lap of 1:19.090 (89.579 mph) in the BMW M3 GT that he will pilot with Dirk Mueller for BMW Team RLL. Following up on a victory at the ALMS opener in Sebring and overall at the Daytona 24 Hours, Hand won a hard-fought session that saw the top four cars within 0.373 seconds.

“It’s been a good year and all about momentum,” Hand said. “This is one my favorite venues and I’ve wanted to win here for a long time. On a street course like this, the first guy fast is the guy to beat. So I wanted to go out from the beginning and be that guy. Our car was so good on the balance that I was honestly surprised.”
----
GTC - Jeroen Bleekemolen got his Long Beach pole position after a year of waiting with a lap of 1:23.179 (85.175 mph) for Black Swan Racing. The Dutch pilot broke Andy Lally’s qualifying record from last year by nearly a full second in the Porsche 911 GT3 Cup entry he will share with team owner Tim Pappas. BSR made its GTC debut at Long Beach last year, went on to win four times and claim the class championship.

Bleekemolen was the fastest qualifier last year at Long Beach before the car was excluded in post-session inspections due to an improper fuel mixture.

“We’ve come a long way since last year,” said the former LMP2 winner at Le Mans and Porsche Supercup champion. “We didn’t get the result we wanted here but our guys learned and took so many poles and wins after that. And they started with a win at Sebring this season. But we know it will be tough all year, just by looking at the times."
----
Tequila Patrón American Le Mans Series at Long Beach
Long Beach street circuit, Long Beach, Calif.
Friday’s qualifying
1. Chris Dyson, Pleasant Valley, NY (US); Guy Smith, Bracken, Yorkshire (GB); Lola B09 86/Mazda (LMP1), 1:14.001, 179.998
2. Lucas Luhr, Monte Carlo (DE); Klaus Graf, Dornham (DE); AMR/ Lola Coupe B08 62 (LMP1), 1:14.453, 178.905
3. Gunnar Jeannette, Salt Lake City, UT (US); Ricardo Gonzalez, Monterrey (MX); Oreca FLM09 (LMPC), 1:17.736, 171.349
4. Kyle Marcelli, Barrie, ON (CA); Tomy Drissi, Los Angeles, CA (US); Oreca FLM09 (LMPC), 1:18.124, 170.498
5. Alex Figge, Denver, CO (US); Miles Maroney, Topanga, CA (US); Oreca FLM09 (LMPC), 1:18.286, 170.145
6. Eric Lux, Jacksonville, FL (US); Elton Julian, Santa Monica, CA (Spa); Oreca FLM09 (LMPC), 1:18.690, 169.272
7. Dirk Mueller, Monte Carlo (DE); Joey Hand, Sacramento, CA (US); BMW M3 GT (GT), 1:19.090, 168.416
8. Oliver Gavin, Yardley Hastings (GB); Jan Magnussen, Roskilde (DK); Chevrolet Corvette C6 ZR1 (GT), 1:19.137, 168.316
9. Bill Auberlen, Redondo Beach, CA (US); Dirk Werner, Kissenbrück (DE); BMW M3 GT (GT), 1:19.447, 167.659
10. Joerg Bergmeister, Langenfield (DE); Patrick Long, Bellaire, FL (US); Porsche 911 GT3 RSR (GT), 1:19.463, 167.625
11. Bryan Sellers, Braselton, GA (US); Wolf Henzler, Nuertingen (DE); Porsche 911 GT3 RSR (GT), 1:20.065, 166.365
12. Scott Sharp, Jupiter, FL (US); Johannes van Overbeek, San Francisco, CA (US); Ferrari F458 Italia (GT), 1:20.167, 166.153
13. Ed Brown, Las Vegas, NV (US); Guy Cosmo, West Palm Beach, FL (US); Ferrari F458 Italia (GT), 1:20.176, 166.135
14. Bryce Miller, Summit, NJ (US); Sascha Maassen, Lontzen (DE); Porsche 911 GT3 RSR (GT), 1:20.646, 165.166
15. Olivier Beretta, Monte Carlo (MC); Tommy Milner, Leesburg, VA (US); Chevrolet Corvette C6 ZR1 (GT), 1:20.724, 165.007
16. Bruno Junqueira, Brazil (BRA); Cristiano da Matta, Belo, Horizonte (BRA); Jaguar XKR (GT), 1:20.924, 164.599
17. Jon Bennett, Fort Mill, SC (US); Frankie Montecalvo, Highlands, NJ (US); Oreca FLM09 (LMPC), 1:21.387, 163.663
18. PJ Jones, Torrance, CA (US); Paul Gentilozzi, Grand Ledge, MI (USA); Jaguar XKR (GT), 1:22.244, 161.957
19. Tim Pappas, Boston, MA (US); Jeroen Bleekemolen, Monte Carlo, (Net); Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (GTC), 1:23.179, 160.137
20. Bill Sweedler, Westport, CT (US); Leh Keen, Dublin, GA (USA); Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (GTC), 1:23.853, 158.849
21. Nicky Pastorelli, Rijswijk (NL); Dominik Schwager, Eisenhofen (DEU); Lamborghini Gallardo LP560-4 (GT), 1:23.906, 158.749
22. Spencer Pumpelly, Mason Neck, VA (USA); Duncan Ende, Los Angeles, CA (USA); Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (GTC), 1:24.134, 158.319
23. John Potter, Salt Lake City, UT (USA); Craig Stanton, Long Beach, CA (US); Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (GTC), 1:24.362, 157.891
24. Bret Curtis, Valencia, CA (US); James Sofronas, Newport Beach, CA (USA); Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (GTC), 1:24.651, 157.352
25. Dion von Moltke, Coral Gables, FL (USA); Brendan Gaughan, Las Vegas, NV (US); Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (GTC), 1:24.878, 156.931
26. Darren Law, Phoenix, AZ (US); Seth Neiman, San Francisco, CA (US); Porsche 911 GT3 RSR (GT), 1:25.543, 155.711
27. Nick Ham, Evergreen, CO (US); Scott Blackett, Avon, CO (US); Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (GTC), 1:25.743, 155.348
28. Jaime Melo, Milan (BR); Toni Vilander, Kankaanpaa (FIN); Ferrari F458 Italia (GT), 1:48.071, 123.252
29. Anthony Nicolosi, Palm Beach, FL (US); Jarrett Boon, Phoenix, AZ (US); Oreca FLM09 (LMPC), No Time
30. Scott Tucker, Leawood, KS (US); Christophe Bouchut, Paris (Fra); Lola Honda (LMP2), No Time
31. Luis Diaz, Mexico City (MX); Scott Tucker, Leawood, KS (US); Lola Honda (LMP2), No Time.

This pole by the Mazda powered Dyson Racing Lola provided a much-needed lift for Mazda, which remains in shock following last month’s horrific earthquake and tsunami in Japan.

As said Chris Dyson at the end of the Press Conference - "The people in the home country, the Mazda folks, they have come through an enormous ... enormous tragedy, and with enormous implications for their, for that country and we are honored to be able to deliver and at least enable them to have some light in what has been a very dark existence for a number of weeks. We hope that anything we do here will make them pleased and honored ... that we are part of it - we are definitely, have them in our minds and our hearts, throughout - since the whole thing happened."

The Long Beach round will go live on ESPN3.com at 4:15 p.m. PT. Fans outside the U.S. can access live broadcasts through americanlemans.com, which also offers live timing and scoring throughout the weekend. The race will air on ESPN2 on Sunday, April 17, at 5 p.m. (ET). Visit the American Le Mans Series' schedule page for information on tickets and area accommodations.

You can follow the Series on Twitter (almsnotes), on our Facebook page and the official YouTube channel.

... notes from The EDJE

Long Beach Is Prepped! ... "Let's Get Ready To R(copyright)!"

Media Luncheon driver group photo that included, Mike Conway, Ryan Briscoe, Will Power, Oliver Gavin, Justin and brother Stefan Wilson, James Jakes, Scott Sharp, Ed Brown Oriol Servia and Charlie Kimball in the roof. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2011)

Long Beach Is Prepped! ... "Let's Get Ready To R(copyright)!"

The annual race through the streets of Long Beach has always been characterized as a rough and tumble street fight between drivers and cars. So please excuse us if we are reminded of a man, standing at the middle of a ring, with a microphone in his hand, making a loud announcement and using the word RUMBLE! The picture just seems to fit the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach.

From the E! style Toyota Pro/Celebrity Scion tCs battles, all of the way through Drifting exhibitions, the Pirelli World Challenge, the exotic Patron American Le Mans Series, to the open wheel excitement of IZOD IndyCar series racing rarely does a competition go down without a brutal contest and issues with a wall or another competitor.

This what we come to expect from this rite of spring event here in the LA Basin - great weather, people lookin' racy and stylin' to the 9's, and tough time at the beginning of the race ... any race in turn #1!

Will Power - Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2011)

Ryan Hunter-Raey - Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2011)

The talk from IndyCar drivers - specifically, Penske's Will Power (series points leader after 2 races), and Andretti Autosport's Ryan Hunter-Raey (defending Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach champion) centered around the new rule for IndyCar restarts implemented this season ... double file on all starts during the entire race. It was what was discussed most often during the TGPLB pre-event luncheon at the infield Tacate Lite Lounge yesterday.

Paul Tracy will join a full 28 car field and run his first race of the season with the Jay Penske Dragon Racing Team. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2011)

In previous years, only the first start of the race had two rows side-by-side going into the hard left turn #1 after screaming down the wide and fast Shoreline Drive, soft right-turn, front straight. Speeds could reach over 170 mph just to be braked down to under 60 mph under ideal conditions - no other cars on one's left or right. So, after any full-course YELLOW Flag, the re-start of the race will be just as hazardous and exciting as the first start of the race with no romm to fudge in the first few turns with everyone looking to gain positions.

Then there comes the ability to pass at the track. The Patron American Le Mans race last year saw Adrian Fernandez in his Aston Martin get passed by Simon Pagenaud in his Acura in the last laps which always keeps the excitement high.

This excerpted and edited from autoblog.com -

With six minutes to go, the race looked to belong to Fernandez. With 50 seconds left, the pair crossed the start/finish line for the final time. By the time they reached Turn 1, Adrian had powered ahead by a sizable amount. Through 2,3 and 4, though, Simon was right on his tail again. As the two entered Turn 5, Fernandez made an uncharacteristic slip and when he ran wide, Pagenaud slid through and into the lead. It briefly appeared that Fernandez would take it back in 6,7, or even 8, but by the time they hit slower traffic at the hairpin, Simon was still ahead. Could that big V12 outdrag the ARX-01c on the final blast to the checkers? Not this time. Pagenaud held on, taking the win by just 0.353 seconds.
Reference Here

The Dyson Racing, G-Oil, Mazda/Lola of the LMP1 classification in the American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón. Image Credit: ALMS/Patron

More about the Long Beach street course as seen by the Mazda/Lola Dyson Racing's Chris Dyson excerpted and edited from the ALMS -

IN HIS OWN WORDS: CHRIS DYSON
At Long Beach owning the LMP1 championship lead

After finishing the 12 Hours of Sebring second among the American Le Mans Series LMP1 entries (and first in points), Chris Dyson gave his thoughts on Dyson Racing`s performance at Sebring, this weekend`s upcoming Tequila Patrón American Le Mans Series at Long Beach, and the start of a new season...

The team is coming off a solid run at Sebring. How does that affect your confidence for the Long Beach race and for the season?
It makes a huge difference for the season, to be honest. If there`s one lesson we`ve learned from our years in the ALMS, it is that you have to score week in and week out. Sebring is a bonus points event, so it`s critical to have a strong result. The team executed brilliantly all week at Sebring and that really sets the tone for the rest of the year.

Best memory from Sebring?
Midway through the event, I looked at the timing and scoring and we were running fourth overall with a car that was five seconds off the pace. I really chuckled at that, but it was no fluke. The faster cars were smashing into each other and going off into the tires, and our Mazda had just marched up the charts. Obviously, we couldn`t sustain it over the full race, but it did give us all some genuine pride in the quality of the team`s performance and strategy.

You first ran Long Beach in 2005. Your thoughts on your very first lap of the track?
I fell in love with Long Beach right away. It`s a great challenge. Most street circuits don`t really have long straightaways and good rhythm sections, but Long Beach is unique. Also, you really feel like you`re competing on a grand stage. The track is like a cavern slicing though a city, and the crowds are fantastic. The whole time it feels like you`re in a huge stadium. It`s an extra buzz and you find yourself digging deeper every lap.

How much of an adjustment is there in a driver`s style going from the wide-open track at Sebring to the confines of a street race like Long Beach?
You have to treat both tracks with equal respect. Sebring looks wide open but in reality there`s so little runoff, you can have a massive shunt before you even know what happened. Also, it`s the first race of the year and the last thing you want to do is jeopardize the team`s result in an enduro. Long Beach has Jersey barriers lining the track and that keeps you honest. You have to respect the limit at all times because Long Beach is entirely unforgiving. Blow the corner entry and pay the price.

What is the best part of the Long Beach track?
I really like the last section of corners before the Queen`s Hairpin. You come down the back straight and brake as late as you can, but you have to be careful of the bumps in the middle of the braking zone. Get greedy and your day will be over instantly. But if you get the entrance to that corner right, the car flows through the rest of the complex quite nicely. It`s a challenge every lap, and very important for lap time.

Why does Long Beach posses such an iconic standing among street races?
I think it`s mainly the venue itself and the great history of the event. If you look at a transformative event in a city`s history, the LBGP is certainly one of the biggest game- changers for Long Beach. The fact that it has run without interruption for over thirty-five years is a staggering accomplishment for a street race. Most come and go after only a few years. The longevity and the importance of the SoCal market means it`s the "city" race that every team and sponsor wants to win the most.

The importance of qualifying at Long Beach vs. other tracks?
Qualifying is very important at Long Beach, but the nature of the track still allows for passing and this means it`s not the do-all and end-all. The polesitter hasn`t won the race every year we`ve been here, and that says something about the place.

Is Long Beach more of a measured strategy compared to others on the ALMS calendar?
It`s a tough one because it`s an unusual race distance. At two hours, it`s the shortest race on the calendar and it`s the first time we`ve run the race over 90 minutes here. This is going to raise some interesting strategic points because fuel economy will be just as big of a factor as outright performance and arguably more so. Once the flag drops, it`s up to Vince (Wood) and Peter (Weston) to navigate Guy and I to the front!

Last year you were elected to the Road Race Drivers Club at Long Beach. A highlight of the year for you?
It was really cool-- an honor-- to join the RRDC. I had been pestering my dad for years about joining this "secret society" and he and Bob Leitzinger always used to laugh about that. All joking aside, the highlight of my year was finding out that we were having a baby girl!

What kind of flavor does a race weekend have when we share the track with IndyCar?
It`s enhanced. The turnout is always very good and the same kind of fans who watch IndyCars like ALMS, and vice versa. It`s always great to see our friends from the IndyCars, several of whom have competed in ALMS the past few years. Usually, we share the venues at classic stops on our tours, so the crowds are really into it.

The car ran flawlessly at Sebring. Talk a little bit about the advances that have been done to the Mazda MZR-R engine, the Lola chassis and the Dunlop tires in the offseason.
Engine-wise, the team ended 2010 on a very strong footing. The second half of last season reflected all the hard work and development efforts that AER had put into the Mazda MZR-R engine. It`s the smallest engine on the track, but you`d never know that based on the Mazda turbo`s performance. This offseason, the engine team has concentrated on maximizing the power and torque curves based on the 2011 regulations, which are quite a bit different than last year`s and which were finalized quite late in the day. On the Lola chassis front, over the winter, we focused on starting the season with the narrower, 2011 rear wing and understanding the effects this would have on the balance of the car. There`s less downforce, so this has meant that we have had to reconsider the mechanical setup, including the springs and shock absorbers. We worked very hard in the testing to regain the balance and make the car happy on the tires, which thanks to Dunlop have taken another step forward. We had a pretty short timescale to come up with a race-able package, but as always the DRT engineering team gave us a great car in the race at Sebring. There`s definitely some more to come with the car, but we`ve hit the ground running.

This is a home race for Mazda with their corporate headquarters nearby. How does the addition of their enthusiastic fans affect the team and drivers?
The SoCal tuning crowd really has lots of love for Mazda, and the paddock is always mobbed around our cars. It`s amazing how passionate the Mazda owners are about the brand!

A recent Motor Trend article called Dyson Racing the `greenest entry" in the ALMS with biodegradable oil, G-OIL and bio-fuel isobutanol. How does this green message fit in with your view on the direction of racing and the ALMS?
It`s a great fit and really a matter of perfect timing that we happened to align ourselves with "green" thinking companies as the ALMS was truly beginning to embrace Green Racing. I couldn`t be prouder of our partners. It`s an honor to be aligned with such a forward-thinking group at G-OIL, who recognize the ALMS as a terrific platform to showcase their wonderful product in the most demanding racing conditions. Likewise Mazda, whose 2.0 liter MZR-R turbo engine is a core engine for their road car platform, has leveraged the value of the ALMS program as a direct connection to the their own, cutting-edge showroom products. And we have been able to give the world debut to the isobutanol fuel, which is revolutionary. How many other racing platforms allow for such a broad array of technological freedom and innovation? Racing needs to be fast, exciting and dramatic. But it can also contribute some genuine good to the world through innovation. The ALMS has given us the opportunity to showcase some incredible technologies and spread our partners` messages in a thrilling environment.

This year’s race will be telecast by ESPN2 from 5 to 7 p.m. ET on Sunday, April 17. Live video and radio coverage will be available on americanlemans.com and ESPN3.com starting at 7:15 p.m. ET/4:15 p.m. local time. Visit the American Le Mans Series` schedule page for information on tickets and area accommodations.
(ht: ALMS by Patron)

... notes from The EDJE

Motor Press Guild's April Meeting - Edsel Ford Wants This Bowl!

Help Edsel Ford find this punchbowl and have it inspire young minds to the allure of motorsports at the Henry Ford. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2011)

Motor Press Guild's April Meeting - Edsel Ford Wants This Bowl!

At the just concluded April luncheon of the Motor Press Guild, Edsel Ford, one of the great-grandchildren generation of the founding family of the Ford Motor Company, asked everyone in the room full of writers and broadcasters to find this punch bowl!

Henry Ford's first race car ... "Sweepstakes". Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2011)


"Sweepstakes" was powered by a 538 ci, 2 cylinder, 26 hp engine. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2011)

This punch bowl was the trophy that Alexander Winton had hand-picked for his participation in a race won by Henry Ford. This was the first race Henry Ford had won and started Ford Racing 110 years ago.

"Sweepstakes" in race form. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2011)

The race originally was scheduled to be a 25 lap race but was scaled down to a 10 lap race due to the fact that only seven teams were able to make it to the starting line. Henry Ford built a car that featured a 2 cylinder, 538 cubic inch displacement engine that developed 26 HP, named "Sweepstakes" ... custom made for the race.

The pass of Alexander Winton by Henry Ford that allows Ford Racing to claim its first ever trophy ... the punchbowl trophy. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2011)

This bowl was sold at auction by the predecessor house to Sotheby's on October 17, 1951 without knowing its historic value to the Ford Racing legacy as the very first trophy won by Ford Racing and Edsel would like to bring it back home to display at The Henry Ford Museum.

Audio of Edsel Ford telling the story of the first Ford Racing trophy and the plea to bring the punchbowl back!

... notes from The EDJE