Change of direction source: indycar.com / Dave Lewandowski Tony Kanaan threw superstition to the wind at The Milwaukee Mile. It worked, and in the process another was born. Last year, a laundry mix-up necessitated that the Andretti Green Racing driver wear the same firesuit for three days of practice, qualifying and racing at The Mile. He won, and indicated/warned that he would follow the same path for the June 2-3 ABC Supply/A.J. Foyt 225 presented by Time Warner Cable. Well, Kanaan changed his mind - and suit - for the race. He won again, beating teammate and Indianapolis 500 winner Dario Franchitti to the checkers by 2.5707 seconds. "I changed suits today," Kanaan said after exiting Victory Circle. "See, all my superstitions go to the trash every time I change something. It's just in your head really." The victory moved Kanaan to fourth in the championship standings (20 points behind pace-setter Franchitti) after six of 17 rounds. He'll have little time to celebrate as practice for the Bombardier Learjet 550k at the 1.5-mile Texas Motor Speedway begins June 7. Franchitti made his way to Victory Lane after the obligatory TV/radio interviews to congratulate Kanaan, who led the 91st Indianapolis 500 when rain brought out the red flag. The race re-started after a 2-hour, 57-minute delay, and Franchitti was ahead of the pack when rain cut short the race by 34 laps. "(Franchitti) said, 'If there is a payback, I think you got yours,' '' Kanaan said. I said, 'Yeah, the difference is it's a $1 million check versus $100,000.''' Franchitti predicted Kanaan, who started third, would win at The Mile. "Between me and him, it's such a special relationship as friends. As soon as I crossed the finish line, I saw he was second, I knew he was leading the championship. We're doing what we were supposed to do. As a team, we're working really well together, the two of us. Now we need to bring the other two guys up the way we have. The more help we get up in the front, the easier it's going to be for us to win this championship."
Recent Articles
|
Racing Multimedia
Recommendations |