Schumacher first to win five races at Indianapolis

The German became the first in any series to win at the famed speedway.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
INDIANAPOLIS -- Michael Schumacher remains the king of the U.S. Grand Prix, no matter the size of the field.
The seven-time Formula One champion became the first driver in any series to win five races at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, taking his fourth straight Sunday on the 2.6-mile, 13-turn road course at the famed Brickyard.
The only other drivers to win as many as four at Indy are A.J. Foyt, Al Unser and Rick Mears -- all in the Indianapolis 500 -- and NASCAR's Jeff Gordon in the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard.
Schumacher was followed by Felipe Massa for a 1-2 Ferrari finish. Afterward, Schumacher picked up his teammate and tossed him in the air, waving his arms like a maestro as the crowd sang along with the German anthem. He leaped to the top step of the victory podium.
"I've had very good times here," the 37-year-old German said. "I feel very excited right now and on the podium I showed a lot of emotions. There are a lot of reasons that come into it, and it's something special."
Alonso places fifth
Formula One champion Fernando Alonso, who had won six of the first nine races and four in a row entering Sunday, was never in contention and wound up fifth. Giancarlo Fisichella, Alonso's Renault teammate, finished third, followed by Toyota's Jarno Trulli.
Schumacher won for the third time this season and the 87th time of his career. He cut Alonso's championship lead from 25 points to 19 with eight of 18 races left.
"It was an important win," Schumacher said. "We can only hope to keep some of the edge we have this weekend the rest of the season."
Massa's best finish until Sunday was third in the European Grand Prix on May 7, Schumacher's previous victory.
IRL
KANSAS CITY, Kan. -- Sam Hornish Jr. celebrated his 27th birthday with his second straight Indy Racing League victory -- and the season points lead.
Hornish blew past Dan Wheldon after a restart with 17 laps to go at Kansas Speedway, then won a back-and-forth battle down the stretch for his third victory of the season. He also extended his series record with his 17th career win.
"The last couple of laps were a little bit fun -- but a little bit nervous too," said Hornish, this year's Indianapolis 500 winner.
Wheldon, the defending IRL champion, passed Hornish on the 197th lap of the 200-lap, 300-mile race. He was still narrowly ahead with two to go, but Hornish retook the lead in the white flag lap and held it until the end of the Kansas Lottery Indy 300.
"We gave it everything we got," said Wheldon, who also was second here last year and has not won since the season opener at Homestead. "We just came up short."
Wheldon's view
Wheldon also dismissed suggestions that he realized he couldn't catch Hornish and backed off rather than risk a crash.
"Absolutely not. At this point in the championship, there's no point in me coming in second to a Penske car," said Wheldon, who drives for Target Chip Ganassi Racing. "I've got to win or do nothing. I tried everything that I possibly could."
Vitor Meira was third for the second straight year, his third straight top-three finish here. But it was little consolation for the 29-year-old Brazilian, who extended one IRL record for futility and matched another.
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