Hand-painted honor source: indycar.com / Dave Lewandowski Delphi Panther Racing driver Vitor Meira will wear a helmet hand-painted by Brazilian pop artist Romero Britto for the Iowa Corn Indy 250 presented by ethanol at Iowa Speedway. It will be included in an auction with proceeds to benefit Panther Racing's charity Best Buddies. Britto, known for his vivid colors, joyful themes and bold compositions, has been a fixture on the international art scene for almost 20 years. The helmet is a representation of Britto's work, with bright colors, unique shapes and the Roman Numeral 18, Meira's lucky number. "I was flattered when Britto told me he was going to paint a helmet for me, and now that I've seen it I don't even know what to say," Meira said. "I have to thank him for doing this. It's an honor for me and Panther is always looking for ways to support Best Buddies. I have to say, if I win the Iowa race this weekend, Britto is going to be painting a lot more helmets." Meira has already hinted that it's possible he will be the top bidder when the helmet goes up for auction. Panther team co-owner John Barnes and his wife Jane have been longtime fans of Britto, and have several of his paintings in their Indianapolis home. Most recently, they purchased two paintings that Britto created for Super Bowl XLI. "Maybe if we're lucky someday he'll paint the entire No. 4 car for us," John Barnes said. Split compound for tires Based on input and data from two separate tests at Iowa Speedway, Firestone engineers have elected to bring the same compound and construction as the 2007 Motegi/Indianapolis 500 tire for the left side of the cars, and the 2007 superspeedway specification (previously used at Homestead, Kansas and Texas) for the right side of the cars. "After trying numerous different Firestone Firehawk compound and construction combinations, the best option turned out to be a pairing of our 1.5-mile oval spec and this year's Indy 500 tire," said Al Speyer, executive director of Firestone Racing. "These tires have already proven themselves on track this season, and we expect that they will demonstrate the same grip, durability and consistency at this event."
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