THE LINE

October 5, 2011

(Image © 2011 - John Thawley Motorsports Photography - http://www.johnthawley.com)
Editor-in-Chief's Note: The American Le Mans Series "Petit Le Mans" was held at Road Atlanta last Saturday and the series delivered another sensational event. We will have full coverage up shortly with a report from A.J. Morning in "Fumes," but in the meantime you can check out John Thawley's scintillating images from the weekend here. This is John's last ALMS gallery of the 2011 season and we will have a "Best of" gallery of John's work up later in the year. - PMD

(Bret Kelley/IndyCar)
After a 22-lap duel with Dario Franchitti (No. 10 Target Chip Ganassi Racing Downy Dallara/Honda/Firestone), Ed Carpenter was thankful he had one Honda "push-to-pass" available on the final lap of the Kentucky Indy 300. He pushed the button and urged his No. 67 Sarah Fisher Racing Dollar General D/H/F machine to the start/finish line edging Franchitti by 0.0098 of a second for his - and the team's - first IndyCar win and the sixth-closest race in IZOD IndyCar Series.

(Chris Jones/IndyCar)
Dario Franchitti finished second, his best finish at Kentucky Speedway. He also regained the IZOD IndyCar Series championship points lead by 17 points heading into the final race of the season.

(Bret Kelley/IndyCar)
Scott Dixon (No. 9 Target Chip Ganassi Racing D/H/F) finished third to wrap up the A.J. Foyt Oval Trophy. "It was a frustrating day, really, we were just going slow for some reason," Dixon said afterward. "Obviously we finished pretty well in third, but it took three of four laps to get going. I kept trying to jump the restarts to get a bit of an advantage, but as soon as Dario and other guys on the restart just blew on by. Actually we messed p some of the restarts, but great day for the team, huge points swing in the championship for Dario, which is much needed and is going to make it exciting going into Vegas. All in all, going to take the positives, and obviously winning the A.J. Foyt Oval Championship was definitely a nice end to the season.

(Bret Kelley/IndyCar)
The action was fast and furious at Kentucky Speedway, but unfortunately only a handful of fans witnessed the great racing. It's no wonder that IndyCar is not expected to return to Kentucky next year. The next IZOD IndyCar Series race is the Las Vegas Indy 300, the main event of the IZOD IndyCar World Championship Presented by Honda, on Oct. 16 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The race will be televised live by ABC at 3 p.m. The race will be broadcast by the IMS Radio Network on XM 94.

(Chris Jones/IndyCar)
Will Power (No. 12 Team Penske Verizon D/H/F) entered the penultimate race of the season with an 11-point lead over Dario Franchitti. He started from the pole but contact with the No. 24 Dreyer & Reinbold Racing car driven by Ana Beatriz on pit lane on Lap 49 put a gash in the left sidepod of his machine. Power had to pit twice more and fell back to 23rd - the last car on the lead lap. He persevered and finished 19th, but is now 18 points behind Franchitti entering the IZOD IndyCar World Championships Presented by Honda in Las Vegas in two weeks.

(Bret Kelley/IndyCar)
There's nothing like a first win. Nothing. Especially for a driver and a team pushed to the brink. Dollar General is leaving Sarah Fisher Racing at the end of the season and for a team that has struggled since its inception, it was sweet respite for a team lost in a swirling maelstrom of "What are we going to do next?" It was great to see this underdog team enjoy its day in the sun.

(Chris Jones/IndyCar)
Sarah Fisher and her husband Andy (and their brand new, three-week-old baby) celebrate in Victory Lane with Ed Carpenter. A most memorable day.

(Chris Jones/IndyCar)
Mr. and Mrs. Carpenter and family celebrate his first IndyCar win. "It felt way better than I ever thought it was going to feel," Carpenter said. "Dario raced me hard and clean. I knew we had the better car but in the second or third step. It was weird race because my visor was falling off in one of the steps and we had all sorts of stuff going on, the team made changes all day to the car…just an awesome day for Dollar General, Angie's List, Fuzzy's Vodka and everyone involved... I wasn't going to let a visor coming off stop me from winning the race. I drove 15 or 20 laps with one hand holding on to my helmet ' til a pit stop, so just so proud to be a part of this team and this organization. Andy, Sarah, and I can't thank my wife enough for supporting me all these years to get to this point, it's taken a long time to get our first win, but that's fine with me." Picture Perfect.

(Chris Jones/IndyCar)
Stefan Wilson (No. 5 Andretti Autosport) earned his first Sunoco Pole Award and then went on to win the Kentucky Indy 100 at Kentucky Speedway. Here he passes Josef Newgarden (No. 11 Copart/Score Big/Robo-Pong/Sam Schmidt Motorsports) on Lap 37 for the lead. Newgarden had already clinched the Firestone Indy Lights championship by taking the green flag.

(Chris Jones/IndyCar)
Josef Newgarden, the 2011 Firestone Indy Lights Champion, celebrates with his Sam Schmidt Motorsports team. "I'm elated for all of the guys," Newgarden said. "The entire team has worked so hard and they really put a lot into this year. It's a big day for all of them and certainly for the whole team." The final Firestone Indy Lights race of the season is the Las Vegas 100 on Oct. 16 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Editor-in-Chief's Note: So you think you know what racing in NASCAR's Sprint Cup series is all about? Check out Gordon Kirby's excellent piece about Hendrick Motorsports here. It's well worth the read. - PMD

Editor-in-Chief's Note: If you really must keep up on all of the latest F1 developments and the potential U.S. GP in Austin, Texas, go here. - PMD

Editor-in-Chief's Note: Check out Michelin's racing website - "Michelin Alley" - and get in on all of the behind-the-scenes buzz. Go here. - PMD

CLICK HERE TO VISIT THE AE STORE

See another live episode of "Autoline After Hours" with hosts John McElroy, from Autoline Detroit, and Peter De Lorenzo, The Autoextremist, and guests this Thursday evening, at 7:00PM EDT at www.autolinedetroit.tv.

By the way, if you'd like to subscribe to the Autoline After Hours podcasts, click on the following links:

Subscribe via iTunes:

http://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?id=311421319

Subscribe via RSS:

http://www.autolinedetroit.tv/podcasts/feeds/afterhours-audio.xml