Catchfence

“Early Incident with Antinucci Causes Rear Wing Damage, Panther to Lose a Lap”

TORONTO – (July 12, 2009) – Panther Racing driver Dan Wheldon was nearly taken out in the first of what turned out to be a plethora of accidents Sunday in the Honda Indy Toronto but rebounded to finish 14th on the 11-turn, 1.755-mile downtown street circuit. Panther remains in sixth position in the IndyCar Series championship as the series will take a week off before traveling back to Canada for a race on the airport circuit in Edmonton.

Wheldon moved up to 17th quickly from his starting position of 21st when – on Lap 8 – Richard Antinucci attempted to get inside the No. 4 in the third turn of the course and contacted the No. 4 car. He continued, and the National Guard car needed to be restarted after making light contact with the outside wall. The incident caused minor damage to the rear wing and forced the team to lose a lap, but Wheldon was still able to complete the race clean while many other competitors were knocked out in crashes.

Ganassi Racing driver Dario Franchitti was the eventual winner, with Team Penske teammates Ryan Briscoe and Will Power finishing out the podium.

The Rexall Edmonton Indy will be broadcast live on VERSUS at 5 p.m. (EST), with additional coverage provided by the IMS Radio Network, www.indycar.com and Sirius XM channel 211.

Dan Wheldon, No. 4 National Guard Dallara Honda

“I must say it was a difficult weekend for all of us on the National Guard Panther Racing team. We all worked extremely hard, especially during the race, but we all know that we can do better. Some of the best cars I’ve driven this year have been on the road and street courses, so we’re all looking forward to a break next weekend and then we’ll all bounce back in Edmonton. It’s times like these that you grow stronger as a group, and in the long run we’ll learn from experiences like this.”

- Panther Racing Press Release