Friday
Sarah Fisher Racing (SFR) Tops Speed From Practice 1 At Indianapolis
By Chris Knight
“It was a much better day than yesterday,” said Fisher, whose best start for the Indianapolis 500 is 9th, in 2003. “We have to keep working on the Dollar General car. This is one big trial and error for us, having not tested in the off-season. There are quite a few things we are learning for the first time. We’ve all been working hard and we’ve figured out some things on the agenda for tomorrow. We’re just going to see how it is goes. We’ve done as much homework as we can, with the track time we’ve been given.”
Conditions were mostly the same as Day 1 of testing at the Brickyard, with meteorologist’s reports of rain expected early in the afternoon. SFR made sure they were ready, should practice be delayed or cancelled, with Fisher quickly putting a 222.391 mph lap on record, by only Lap 11, of 75 for the day. By Lap 24, she had wheeled her quickest time of the month at 222.444 mph.
“We were happy with our speed today,” added Fisher. “This year has been such a welcome change from where we were at in 2008.”
SFR didn’t get the track time they wanted on Friday, as they spent much of it in their garage for changes and a delay, due to rain. The team finally returned to the track for “Happy Hour” at 5:00 p.m., ending the day with a positive outlook heading into Saturday’s qualifications.
“We’re going to take what comes to us tomorrow and be happy with that,” continued Fisher. “At the end of the day, we’ve got to start working on our car for race day and that’s a whole other animal.”
Penske teammates Ryan Briscoe and Helio Castroneves took the top two spots on the speed charts, clocking in at 225.981 and 225.438 mph, respectively. The teams will have final practice Saturday morning in split groups from 9:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. and an all-skate from 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. The teams will, then, turn to qualifications from 12:00 p.m. 6:00 p.m., locking in the Top 11 spots for the 93rd running of the Indianapolis 500.
Fisher drew the 24th position for the qualifying lineup in her attempt for the Peak Motor Oil Poll Award, presented by Auto Zone.
The 2009 IndyCar Series season continues May 24 with the Indianapolis 500 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The race will be telecast live in High Definition (HD) at 1 p.m. (EDT) on ABC. The race will air live on the IMS Radio Network, XM channel 145 and Sirius channel 211. The radio broadcast also will be carried on www.indycar.com, with broadcast coverage summaries available at www.indycar.com and www.sarahfisher.com.
About Sarah Fisher
At just 28 years old, Sarah Fisher has already competed in seven Indianapolis 500′s, been voted “Most Popular Driver” four times in two separate Series (IndyCar and NASCAR), been awarded “Indy’s Best & Brightest Leaders Under 40″ and enters her second season as a team owner in 2009. Fisher is the first woman to qualify fastest for a major North American open-wheel event, the fastest woman to ever qualify for the Indy 500 and is the youngest woman to compete at the legendary Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Fisher has been a guest or profiled on a variety of national platforms such as, LIVE! With Regis & Kelly, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, The Today Show, Glamour, People and Forbes Magazine, to name a few. In 2008, she formed her own race team: Sarah Fisher Racing (SFR), and made her first start as a team owner in the IndyCar Series’ Indy 500. In May 2009, she will attempt to make her eighth start in the Indy 500, marking the most number of starts for a woman in the 93-year history of the race.
Website: http://www.sarahfisher.com
About Sarah Fisher Racing, LLC.
Sarah Fisher Racing (SFR) is an auto racing team that competes in the IndyCar Series, founded by IndyCar Series veteran racer, Sarah Fisher. Fisher announced plans to become the IndyCar Series first female owner/driver and the youngest team owner on February 27, 2008, at Homestead-Miami Speedway alongside her father-in-law and Team Co-Owner, John O’Gara. The team will compete in at least six IndyCar Series events in 2009, which includes the Indianapolis 500 with backing from Dollar General Stores.
- Sarah Fisher Racing Press Release
Article Tags: IndyCar, Press Release
