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Castroneves wins pit contest: Helio Castroneves hopes his Carburetion Day fence-climb was only a rehearsal for Sunday. The two-time Indianapolis 500 winner, who earned the nickname Spiderman for his fondness for scaling race track fences, won the annual Indy pit stop contest Friday and repeated his traditional celebration ritual. He also won the pre-race competition in 2002 and went on to his second Indy victory. "It's big for everyone, and every team out there knows it," Castroneves said of each crew's efficiency in the pits, where even a split-second difference can mean victory or defeat. In the final head-to-head round of the contest, Castroneves' Penske Racing crew changed all four tires and simulated a refueling in 8.0852 seconds, beating Dario Franchitti's Andretti Green Racing time of 8.4428 seconds. The winning time was the quickest in the 30-year history of the pit stop contest. It was the second straight and ninth overall pit stop win for Penske, which won last year with Sam Hornish Jr.
Sam, I am fast: Sam Hornish Jr., as dominant as he was all month, was the fastest driver Friday in the final practice before Sunday's Indianapolis 500. The one-hour Carburetion Day practice gave the 33 starters one last chance to test their race setups, and Hornish was satisfied he's ready to go. "Everything's been pretty much on course for us all month long," he said. "The speed was a little bit slower than I expected today, but there was quite a bit of strong wind on the back straightaway. ... But the car was real good in traffic and that's what you're going to need on race day, especially if the heat gets up there." The temperature is forecast in the high 80s on race day.
No favorite: Car owner Bobby Rahal doesn't care who wins the Indianapolis 500, as long as it's one of his drivers. The 1986 winner got his first Indy victory as an owner with Buddy Rice in 2004 and came close a year ago with fourth-place Danica Patrick. Now, with Rice and Patrick starting near the middle of the pack and new teammate Jeff Simmons a bit farther back, it's likely going to be a tougher challenge Sunday. But with the uncertainty of the weather and how the front-runners might be affected by the heat, Rahal's not ruling out another shot at Victory Lane. "They've worked very, very hard," he said Friday before the final practice. "I was very pleased with qualifying. I didn't think we'd run that quick. All of them have said they have the car in race configuration." In 1995, Rahal started his final race at Indy from the 21st position, led one lap and finished third; the year before, he started 28th and also wound up third, so he knows it's possible to move up in the lineup.
Associated Press