Catchfence

Target Chip Ganassi Racing

Race: Indy Japan 300 (September 18, 10:30 PM ET, Versus)

Track: Twin Ring Motegi (1.5-mile tri-oval)

Location: Motegi, Japan

NOTES/NEWS

Managing Director Mike Hull on Japan: “Motegi is a world class facility. Although a 1.5 mile track, it’s not typical of American tracks. It’s very much a driver’s track due to the nature of the entrance to turn three – the driver needs to get the entry right in order to have a good lap. Consecutive fast race laps require the team and driver’s hard work to get the most on race day. Of equal importance is the passion for Indy Car racing that is clearly demonstrated by the Japanese fans. Their knowledge of our sport, its history, and the drivers is felt from the arrival at the Narita airport until departure. It’s a special event.”

Scott Dixon and the No. 9 Target Team

Dixon on Japan: “We need to go out and try and win. We’ve definitely got to clean a few things up. It’s going to be the same for the last two, try and go out and win, obviously try and get a pole, try and lead the most laps and try and win the races. I’m definitely looking forward to Motegi. It’s been a bit of a thorn in my side for some time, and I can’t wait to get back there.”

Last Race in Chicago: Dixon started the 200-lap race from sixth position. He went on to lead 61 laps and was edged out at the finish line by 0.0077-seconds by Ryan Briscoe in the fourth-closest finish in IRL history. Dixon finished second for the fifth time at the 1.5-mile tri-oval.

Last Time at Japan: Last year in Motegi the rain-delayed race turned into a fuel-mileage gamble. Dixon started in second position and quickly advanced, leading twice for a race-high 101 laps. A pit stop on lap 195 cost Dixon the lead, and the Target team had to settle for a third-place finish. Dixon has raced a total of eight times at the 1.5-mile tri-oval in Japan. He has been in six events for the IndyCar Series and two events for the CART Series. His best finish at the track is third (2008), and his best start is from the pole position (2003).

Points: 3rd in points with 517, -33 to leader Ryan Briscoe.

Dario Franchitti and the No. 10 LifeLock Team

LifeLock Paint Scheme: Franchitti and the No.10 team will run the LifeLock paint scheme in Japan. It also ran in Chicagoland last race.

Post Chicago: “The problem I had at the finish (at Chicagoland), I was boxed in almost, because my ideal thing would have been to get behind Briscoe, get a draft and try to go three wide and use the overtake to pass. But I had my teammate (Dixon) leading the race and the guy we’re fighting against the championship on the outside, and these cars when you’re sitting very close to the guy ahead of you, you give him a bit of a push, and I couldn’t and wouldn’t push anybody else apart from my teammate in that fight.

I was trying to push Scott, and that got me hung up there and allowed Mario Moraes to get past. I had all these push to passes left but I couldn’t use them because all I was going to do was run into Scott’s gearbox, so that was kind of frustrating. But it was not a great night for the Target team. Obviously we’re still in the fight for the championship, but Ryan did another good job, and we’re going to have to keep going to have to make something happen these next two races.”

Last Time at Japan: Franchitti has raced a total of nine times at Motegi. His best finish came while he was driving in the CART Series in 2000. Franchitti started the race in the 17th spot and went on to finish second. His last race at the 1.5-mile tri-oval in the IndyCar Series was in 2007 where he started in the seventh spot and finished third.

About Target Chip Ganassi Racing (TCGR)

Target Chip Ganassi Racing is the reigning IndyCar Series champion, scoring eight wins in 15 races to date in 2009. Chip Ganassi created his own one-car IndyCar team in 1990 and established a partnership with sponsor, Target. Today, Target Chip Ganassi Racing includes two entries in the Indy Racing League for 2008 IndyCar Series champion and Indianapolis 500 winner Scott Dixon, and 2007 IndyCar Series champion and Indianapolis 500 winner Dario Franchitti. Target Chip Ganassi Racing has collected six Championships and 72 wins since 1994 and operates out of a state-of-the-art race shop facility in Indianapolis, Ind., with a corporate office in Pittsburgh, Pa.

- Target Chip Ganassi Racing Press Release