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Ganassi, Penske drivers set to battle for 2010 IndyCar title

Thu 11th, March 2010

Sao Paulo, Brazil (Sports Network) - The IndyCar Series -- with new title sponsor IZOD -- kicks off its 2010 season this weekend in Brazil, marking the first time the series competes in a South American country. With 17 races on the schedule, this year should feature another great tug of war among several drivers for the championship. The fight for the title has come down to the last lap of the season-finale the past four years, so don't be surprised if that's the case again on October 2 at Homestead.

WILL GANASSI'S REIGN CONTINUE?

Dario Franchitti capped off his return to IndyCar in 2009 with his second championship. Franchitti edged 2008 series champion and Target Chip Ganassi Racing teammate Scott Dixon by 11 points.

After winning his first title with Michael Andretti's team in 2007, Franchitti joined Ganassi and moved over to NASCAR Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series competition the following year, but his efforts in stock car racing did not go as well as he expected.

His IndyCar comeback was nothing short of success with five victories for the '09 season.

"I think that the Indy car I jumped in was a good one, and Team Target puts really good cars out and that definitely made my job easier," Franchitti said. "I've been doing it for so long before that as opposed to when I went to stock cars which was learning something completely new. This was going back to learning something that was instinct for me. It was all I'd ever really done, so it was a lot easier, and I love driving those cars."

Franchitti and Dixon made Ganassi the head of the class last year with a combined 10 wins.

Dixon became the winningest driver in the series last August when he collected his 20th career victory at Mid-Ohio. Sam Hornish Jr. held the previous record with 19.

Hornish is the only driver with three series titles, but Franchitti and Dixon have the opportunity to match that record this year. Dixon won his first championship in 2003.

PENSKE POWER

Once again, Team Penske will be Ganassi's biggest threat in IndyCar. Penske will field three cars this season, adding Will Power to its stable of full- time drivers. The team has not been a three-car operation since 1994 when Al Unser Jr., Emerson Fittipaldi and Paul Tracy finished 1-2-3, respectively, in points. All three drivers combined for a record-setting 12 wins that year when IndyCar was sanctioned by CART.

Ryan Briscoe had a sensational season with Penske last year, winning three times and finishing just 12 points behind champion Franchitti. Despite missing the first race of the season due to his federal tax evasion trial, Helio Castroneves won two races, including the Indianapolis 500, and finished fourth in the standings. Power ran a limited schedule for Penske last year. After finishing third on the Toronto street circuit and winning on the Edmonton street/airport course, Power appeared to be one of the hottest drivers in the series until a horrifying wreck in practice at Sonoma, CA curtailed his season.

Penske has high expectations entering the Sao Paulo street circuit. Briscoe, Castroneves and Power have each claimed victories on temporary road courses over the last three seasons.

"It's been a long off-season, and I think we're all ready to get 2010 underway in Sao Paulo," Briscoe said. "Team Penske has worked really hard over the last few months, and we're prepared for what we hope will be a great season. We got off to a strong start in preseason testing, and now it's time to see what we can do when we see the green flag."

Penske recently unveiled the new look of the its cars during last month's open test at Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, AL. All three Penske cars this year will feature a sleek black and white color scheme. This will be the first time since 1990 the team will not race its red and white livery.

OTHER COMPETITORS

After a disappointing season last year, Andretti made significant changes to his four-car stable. During the off-season, he took sole ownership of Andretti Green Racing and changed the name to Andretti Autosport.

Andretti also brought on board Tom Anderson as the team's senior vice president of racing operations. Anderson served as managing director of Chip Ganassi Racing from 1990-2000 and helped lead Ganassi to four consecutive CART titles from 1996-99.

After her three-race stint in NASCAR's second-tier series in February, Danica Patrick returns for another full season in IndyCar. Patrick recorded 10 top-10 finishes, including a third-place run in the Indy 500, en route to her career- best finish of fifth in points last year. Andretti had served as her race strategist, but Anderson moves into the role this season.

Patrick is expected to compete in 10 more Nationwide races this year, with her next event scheduled the last weekend in June at New Hampshire.

This year, Ryan Hunter-Reay joins Tony Kanaan, Marco Andretti and Patrick at Andretti. Hunter-Reay currently is slated for a limited number of races, but Andretti is working on a full-time ride for him.

Kanaan, the 2004 series champion, is looking to rebound after his first winless season last year. He started the season with top-five finishes in the first three races but faltered from there. Kanaan hopes his winning ways return when he races in front of his home crowd this week.

"As a Brazilian getting ready to open the season in Brazil, it is hard to explain the excitement and the pressure that I'm feeling," Kanaan said.

Marco Andretti is a long-shot for the title, but could turn in some top-notch performances during the year.

Many seats were swapped during the off-season. Justin Wilson has found a new home with Dreyer & Reinbold Racing. Last year, he gave Dale Coyne Racing it first win in 25 years of IndyCar competition. Milka Duno takes over Wilson's ride at Coyne, while Hideki Mutoh has left Andretti's organization and joined Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing. E.J. Viso is on board with KV Racing Technology after a two-year stint with HVM Racing.

NEWCOMERS

Takuma Sato, Mario Romancini, Ana Beatriz and Simona de Silvestro will make up this year's rookie class.

Sato, who competed in Formula One from 2002-08, makes his IndyCar debut in Brazil, driving for KVRT. Romancini landed a ride with Conquest Racing after graduating from the Firestone Indy Lights Series in '09.

The series will have four female competitors this year, with Beatriz from Brazil in a Dreyer & Reinbold car and de Silvestro from Switzerland driving for HVM.

INDYCAR'S NEW TOP BOSS

Randy Bernard, a longtime top executive at Professional Bull Riders, Inc., recently was named as the new chief executive officer of the Indy Racing League, which is the sanctioning body of the series.

Bernard headed PBR for the last 15 years. Under his leadership, attendance for stand-alone rodeo bull-riding events increased 12 percent and ratings with television partner VERSUS rose nearly 30 percent last year.

VERSUS will televise 12 IndyCar races this year.

"I truly believe I can make a difference with the Indy Racing League, and I see tremendous potential," Bernard said.

Bernard began his role with the IRL on March 1. His appointment came eight months after Tony George resigned as CEO of the governing body. George founded the IRL in 1996.