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NOTES: Three-time and defending champion Helio Castroneves will start on the pole for the 94th running of the Indianapolis 500. Castroneves, who qualified with a speed of 227.970 m.p.h., will be joined on the front row by Will Power and Dario Franchitti. The Brazilian won his first two Indy 500s consecutively from 2001-02. He is the only driver in the event's history to win it in each of his first two starts. In 2009, pole sitter Castroneves led twice for 66 laps, including the final 58, to claim his third Indianapolis 500 win. Castroneves led the opening seven laps, until Dario Franchitti took over for the next 45. Ryan Briscoe then gained the advantage, leading for 11 laps, before Scott Dixon took control. Dixon led for 73 of the next 78 laps. Castroneves then gained the lead and avoided a rash of accidents to cross the finish line 1.9819 seconds ahead of 2005 race winner Dan Wheldon for his 15th career IZOD IndyCar Series victory. Scott Dixon dominated the race in 2008, as he led 115 of 200 laps to capture his first Indianapolis 500. Despite the domination, Dixon still needed a great final pit stop from his No.9 Target Chip Ganassi Racing team to secure the win, as he finished 1.7498 seconds ahead of Vitor Meira. On his last pit stop, Dixon was running in second place, but his crew put up a lightning 7.0-second stop. He beat Meira out of the pits to take the lead for good. In 2007, Dario Franchitti took the checkered flag under caution, as he defeated Scott Dixon to capture the coveted racing title. Starting in the third position, Franchitti moved into the top spot on the 74th lap and held the position through lap 88. Franchitti reclaimed the lead on the 137th lap for another seven laps, until Jaques Lazier took the lead. Tony Kanaan moved in front on lap 146, but Franchitti overtook him on the 155th lap. With rain pending, Franchitti stayed in front and maintained the lead through lap 164, as the rain came. Franchitti eased his car around the flooded track and saw the checkered flag for his first win at Indy. The 2007 race was the seventh shortened by rain. The first came in 1926, when only 160 laps (400 miles) were completed. The shortest rain-plagued event was in 1976 when 102 laps (255 miles) were finished. The 2004 race was the longest, rain-shortened race with 180 laps (450 miles) completed. In 2006, Sam Hornish Jr scored the victory in the 90th running of the Indianapolis 500, as he clipped Marco Andretti by less than one second for his 15th career IndyCar title and his first at the famed Brickyard. Helio Castroneves, who held the lead for the first nine laps, failed to finish due to an accident, completing only 109 laps. Dan Wheldon dominated most of the race, leading five times for a race-high 148 laps, but finished fourth. Hornish led on three separate occasions for only 19 laps, but he overtook Andretti on the final lap for the .0635-second win. The margin of victory was the second closest in Indianapolis 500 history. When Dan Wheldon won in 2005, he fought off a late challenge from Danica Patrick to capture the 89th running of the Indianapolis 500. His seventh career IndyCar title was his first at the famed Brickyard. The win also enabled Michael Andretti to earn his first Indy 500 win as an owner after going 0-for-14 as a driver. Wheldon grabbed the lead from Patrick on lap 193, and held it the rest of the way. The race finished under caution following a crash by Sebastien Bourdais. Patrick, trying to stretch her fuel for more than 38 laps, fell to fourth place behind Vitor Meira and Bryan Herta. This race traditionally has run on Memorial Day weekend since 1911, except war years (1917-18, 1942-45). It is the oldest automobile race in the United States. The track was once paved with 3.2 million bricks, earning the nickname "The Brickyard." A 36-inch "Yard of Bricks" remains at the start/finish line. They are the only remaining visible bricks on the track. Eddie Cheever Jr's win in 1998 came from the 17th starting position, only the second driver to win from that spot in the history of the race. This is the largest single-day sporting event in the world, with an estimated 350,000 to 400,000 spectators. Twenty drivers have won this race from the pole position, the last coming in 2009, when Castroneves captured the checkered flag. The pole sitter has won four of the last six Indy 500s. There are nine drivers who have won this race three or more times. Four-time champions are: A.J. Foyt (1961, 1964, 1967, 1977), Al Unser (1970-71, 1978, 1987), Rick Mears (1979, 1984, 1988, 1991), while three-time winners are: Louis Meyer (1928, 1933, 1936), Wilbur Shaw (1937, 1939, 1940), Mauri Rose (1941, 1947-48), Johnny Rutherford (1974, 1976, 1980), Bobby Unser (1968, 1975, 1981) and Helio Castroneves (2001-02, 2009). Castroneves took a controversial win in 2002 over Paul Tracy when it was determined that Tracy passed him after the yellow flag had been displayed for a caution. Castroneves also became the eighth rookie to win this race in 2001 when he started from the 11th spot. Castroneves took the lead on lap 149 and held on the rest of the way to beat Gil de Ferran by just over one second. The other rookies to win the Indianapolis 500 are: Ray Harroun (1911), Jules Goux (1913), Rene Thomas (1914), Frank Lockhart (1926), George Souders (1927), Graham Hill (1966) and Juan Pablo Montoya (2000). Only three rookies have started on the pole position, other than the inaugural event in 1911: Walt Faulkner (1950), Teo Fabi (1983) and Tony Stewart (1996). With his win in 2009, Castroneves became the all-time money winner in Indianapolis 500 history with $8,673,628. Castroneves has appeared in nine Indy 500s, with eight top-10 finishes, including three victories, and four poles. When Al Unser Jr clipped Scott Goodyear for the 1992 title, he took the checkered flag by just 0.043 seconds, the closest margin of victory in the history of the Indianapolis 500. THIS AND THAT FOR 2010: Recording artist Jewell will sing the national anthem during pre-race ceremonies. Robin Roberts from ABC's "Good Morning America" will drive the 2011 Chevrolet Camaro pace car, leading the field to the green flag. There are four former Indianapolis 500 winners in the starting field: Helio Castroneves (2001, '02 and '09), Dan Wheldon (2005), Dario Franchitti (2007) and Scott Dixon (2008). The record for most former winners in the field is 10 in 1992. The fewest, other than the inaugural race in 1911, is zero in 1912. There are six rookies in the field; Ana Beatriz, Bertrand Baguette, Simona de Silvestro, Mario Romancini, Sebastian Saavedra and Takuma Sato. The Borg-Warner Trophy, which is one of the most recognizable trophies in all of sports, has been awarded to every Indianapolis 500 winner since 1936. Crafted out of sterling silver by Spaulding-Gorham of Chicago, it was unveiled at a dinner in New York in February 1936, featuring bas-relief sculptures of every "500" winner up until that time. The new winner has been added every year since, and in 1986 (the trophy's 50th anniversary), the final space became filled. The solution for 1987 was to add a base, but this too became filled, and in 2004, an even larger version replaced it, this one with enough spaces to last through 2034. The only sculptured face not of a winning driver is that of the late speedway owner Tony Hulman, whose likeness, in gold, was placed on the base in 1987. The June 5th Firestone 550k at Texas Motor Speedway is the next IZOD IndyCar Series event, where Castroneves is the defending champion. 05/24 18:35:39 ET