'I think I can go for a lot longer' - Sharp
source:
irl.racing-live.com
Two of the 25 drivers who started the inaugural Indy
Racing League event at Walt Disney World Speedway on January 27, 1996 are now
car owners in the IndyCar Series.
Only one driver who competed in that inaugural race will attempt to make the
field when the IndyCar Series travels to Phoenix Saturday for the XM Satellite
Radio Indy 200. If Scott Sharp is able to start at Phoenix he will become the
first driver to start 100 races in the IndyCar Series and he will extend his
streak for consecutive races started to 92 (out of a possible 104 races since he
started in the IRL).
Sam Hornish Jr. with Marlboro Team Penske has the second longest consecutive
starting streak in the IRL at 63.
Sharp started fourth and finished 11th in that inaugural race, driving the No.
41 entry for A.J. Foyt Enterprises. He left the race on lap 184 due to an
accident in turn one that also involved Eddie Cheever Jr.
Cheever now is the owner of Red Bull Cheever Racing. Robbie Buhl, who finished
third in that first race at Walt Disney World for Beck Motorsports, is co-owner
of Dreyer and Reinbold Racing.
Sharp is in his 10th season in the IndyCar Series but is competing for just his
third team. Sharp was co-champion of the inaugural IRL season in 1996 and then
in 1997 he suffered two injuries in crashes that caused him to miss most of the
season.