Milwuakee race weekend thread (includes starting grid)

[luke]

Race 9 of 17 ABC Supply Co. / A.J. Foyt 225 The Milwaukee Mile






Weekend schedule: (ET)


Practice 1 Fri Jul 22 : Noon - 2 p.m.

Practice 2 Fri Jul 22 : 4:45 - 5:45 p.m.

Practice 3 Sat Jul 23 : 11:15 a.m. - 12:15 p.m.

Qualifications Sat Jul 23 : 1:35 - 2:40 p.m.

Final Practice Sat Jul 23 : 4:30 - 5 p.m.

ABC Supply Co. AJ Foyt Indy 225 Sun Jul 24 : 2:45 p.m


Weekend weather forcast:

Friday
84°F (29°C) | 65°F (18°C) Cloudy

Saturday
88°F (31°C) | 70°F (21°C) Cloudy

Sunday
88°F (31°C) | 69°F (21°C) Thunder and heavy rain


Website: www.milwaukeemile.com


TV :

U.S. Race Live on ESPN at 2:30 p.m. (EDT),

U.K. Race Live on Sky Sports Xtra at 7:30 p.m. (GMT)

Australia. Race Live on ESPN at 4.30am Monday morning



Radio : IMS


First IRL race: 2004

Total IRL races: 1

Race distance: 225 laps/225 miles

Defending champion: Dario Franchitti

[marcus]

STARTING GRID


1. Sam Hornish Jnr 170.296 (8th Career pole)

78th Career Start

2. Helio Castroneves 170.219 (12th time starting 2nd)

57th Career Start

3. Tomas Sheckter 169.000 (5th time starting 3rd)

54th Career Start

4. Dan Wheldon 168.553 (3rd time starting 4th)

42nd career Start

5. Buddy Lazier 168.514 (7th time starting 5th)

86th Career Start

6. Danica Patrick 167.328 (1st time starting 6th)

10th Career Start

7. Alex Barron 166.844 (2nd time starting 7th)

52nd Career Start

8. Dario Franchitti 166.620 (2nd time starting 8th)

30th Career Start

9. Tony Kanaan 165.578 (2nd time starting 9th)

43rd Career Start

10. Roger Yasukawa 165.334 (5th time starting 10th)

28th Career Start

11. Vitor Meira 164.895 (1st time starting 11th)

39th Career Start

12. Bryan Herta 164.624 (1st time starting 12th)

37th Career Start

13. Scott Sharp 164.617 (7th time starting 13th)

108th Career Start

14. Patrick Carpentier 164.376 (3rd time starting 14th)

10th Career Start

15. Buddy Rice 163.903 (3rd time starting 15th)

43rd Career Start

16. Ed Carpenter 163.886 (7th time starting 16th)

28th Career Start

17. Jimmy Kite 163.041 (3rd time starting 17th)

29th Career Start

18. Scott Dixon 162.386 (1st time starting 18th)

41st Career Start

19. AJ Foyt IV 162.008 (5th time starting 19th)

42nd Career Start

20. Kosuke Matsuura 160.832 (1st time starting 20th)

26th Career Start

21. Darren Manning No time (1st time starting 21st)

24th Career Start


DID NOT START
Ryan Briscoe no time

[luke]

So a Penske one two, and the chevys right up there.

[Tim Northcutt]

Milwaukee is about set-ups....

Penske and Panther are two of the very best teams in the Series when it comes to set-ups....

Think back two seasons ago at another race...Pike's Peak...where Sam Hornish and Panther were dominating the race with a pre-Cosworth Chevy engine that was about 40 hp down from Honda and Toyota...before dropping out of the race in the late stages....

Throughout that event, Sam was passing people on all parts of the race track...not because he had the power to do it, but because he could maintain his speed and drive the car virtually on any line he wished and still run quickly....that was pure, perfect set-up....

For today...keep in mind that there is a major heat wave in this part of the USA this weekend....temperatures will be oppressive in Milwaukee today....and it will make the track very slippery....

It may be difficult to pass there....and the opportunities to run different lines in those wide corners may not be available to competitors in such conditions....

Restarts, pit stops and pit strategy, and getting the handling right for the conditions will be critical factors in today's race....