The 91st edition of classic is just about anyone’s race

The front of the 33-car field for today’s 500 race reads like an all-star roster.

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Tell Helio Castroneves he’s one of the favorites in today’s Indianapolis 500 and he just shrugs his shoulders and grins.

“Yeah, me and 10 other guys,” says the two-time Indy winner.

It seems the 91st edition of the Memorial Day weekend classic is just about anybody’s race.

The front of the 33-car field reads like an all-star roster — pole-winner Castroneves, Tony Kanaan and Dario Franchitti in the first of 11 rows of three, followed by Scott Dixon, defending race winner Sam Hornish Jr. and 2005 winner Dan Wheldon in row two. Ryan Briscoe, Danica Patrick and 2006 runner-up Marco Andretti make up row three.

Add Michael Andretti, Marco’s father and last year’s third-place finisher, in the middle of row four, and that’s a strong list of possible winners.

Five — Kanaan, Franchitti, Patrick and the two Andrettis — drive for Andretti Green Racing.

“When we showed up at this race last year, we weren’t fast enough,” Franchitti said. “We wound up with four cars in the top seven of the race, but that was through perseverance, good strategy and making the right decisions. This year, I feel that we’ve got five cars that are fast enough.”

But there are other teams whose drivers have been just as fast or faster this month.

Penske has record

Team Penske, which fields cars for Castroneves and Hornish, has won a record 14 Indy 500s, including four of the last six, while Target Chip Ganassi, with Wheldon and Dixon as its drivers, won the 500 in 2000 with Juan Pablo Montoya. Wheldon got his Indy win with Andretti Green before moving to Ganassi’s team last year.

From Castroneves to Michael Andretti, their four-lap, 10-mile qualifying efforts were separated by just more than 2 seconds.

Asked to handicap the race, Hornish said, “It wouldn’t surprise me if anybody in the top 11 won this race.

“But the competition for the win is probably going to come from Tony Kanaan. Obviously, I feel that Wheldon, Helio and myself are three guys who have won before and know what it takes to do that.

“Scott and Dario have been very fast here, not only this month, but in past years and have made mistakes that have taken them out of contention in the past. But I had done the same thing until last year, so sometimes it’s just a matter of getting it right.”

Kanaan has been consistent

Kanaan has raced here five times and never started worse than fifth. Since crashing out while leading near the midway point in 2002, his rookie year, the Brazilian has always finished in the top eight, with a second-place run in 2004.

“He seems to be fast, patient, consistent and knows how to make it to the end of the race,” Hornish said. “But he hasn’t had that little bit of Indy luck that you need to get to victory lane.

“It’s not always about how good you are.”

No one knows that better than Michael Andretti, who has come agonizingly close to joining his father, Mario, as an Indy winner.

Michael, who came out of retirement last year at 44 to race against his then-19-year-old son, led with four laps to go before being passed first by Marco and then by eventual winner Hornish.

“I’ve never been able to get to that 500th mile without a problem,” Michael said.

“Maybe there’s a scenario there, yet. I was thinking it was there last year. It almost worked out. But, that’s the only reason I’m back this year. I think I can win this race.”

Knowing his car owner’s history here, Kanaan says he can’t complain that he hasn’t won yet at Indy.

“Yes, I’ve been close a lot of times. ... But that doesn’t mean anything. It’s got to be your day, and [today] could be my day.”