Tony Kanaan

"I've always had mixed feelings about this place," IndyCar driver Tony Kanaan said of Auto Club Speedway, and it's not surprising. Fellow driver Greg Moore, one of Kanaan's close friends, was killed in a racing crash at the two-mile Fontana track in 1999. "It's not something you want to remember," Kanaan said. "Having said that, every time I'm here I finish in the top five," Kanaan said, then added that the net result was "it's definitely a good feeling to come back. " Kanaan was seeking his first win this year when the Izod IndyCar Series held its season-ending race Saturday night at Auto Club Speedway, the first time Indy-style cars had raced there since October 2005.

"I've always had mixed feelings about this place," IndyCar driver Tony Kanaan said of Auto Club Speedway, and it's not surprising. Fellow driver Greg Moore, one of Kanaan's close friends, was killed in a racing crash at the two-mile Fontana track in 1999. "It's not something you want to remember," Kanaan said. "Having said that, every time I'm here I finish in the top five," Kanaan said, then added that the net result was "it's definitely a good feeling to come back. " Kanaan was seeking his first win this year when the Izod IndyCar Series held its season-ending race Saturday night at Auto Club Speedway, the first time Indy-style cars had raced there since October 2005.

Brazilian Tony Kanaan finished a disappointing 19th, but it was still enough for him to be named CART rookie of the year over fellow Brazilian Helio Castro-Neves.

Reporting from Indianapolis Every driver in the Indianapolis 500 gives some nod to the race's famed history and tradition, but perhaps none treats the race and Indianapolis Motor Speedway with more reverence than Dan Wheldon. So it wasn't surprising that moments after the 100th anniversary race reached its chaotic, did-you-see-that climax Sunday, the British driver's voice cracked as he held back tears. "I just kept pushing," said Wheldon, 32, who doesn't have a full-time ride in the Izod IndyCar Series this year but was hired just to drive in the sport's crown-jewel race.

Indy Racing League champion Tony Kanaan was named winner of the Jerry Titus Memorial Trophy during the 35th American Auto Racing Writers and Broadcasters Assn. banquet Saturday night in Pomona. The Titus Award, named for a former racing journalist, is given to the driver receiving the most votes in balloting by AARWBA members for the All-America motor racing team.

As the pole-sitter for Sunday's 89th Indianapolis 500, Tony Kanaan was invited to New York a day ahead of the 32 other qualifiers who got together Monday for a photo shoot in Times Square. So what did his three Andretti Green Racing teammates do? They went with him. Dario Franchitti, Bryan Herta, Dan Wheldon and Kanaan form what has become one of the most successful -- and unusual -- teams in racing.

Tony Kanaan was doubly lucky, Danica Patrick had her best finish, second, and the IndyCar Series is headed for a wild finale after Sunday's Detroit Indy Grand Prix. Kanaan stayed on the track during a late series of pit stops and remained ahead of a last-lap melee to claim his series-best sixth victory of the season and 12th of his career.

A few minutes past noon Sunday, Tony Kanaan concluded four laps around Indianapolis Motor Speedway at 227.566 mph, then sat back and waited nearly six hours while 32 attempts to beat him for the Indianapolis 500 pole were made. Sam Hornish Jr., Helio Castroneves and Dario Franchitti even tried it twice under the new rules, which permit drivers up to three attempts a day to post the speed that will place them in the 33-car field for the May 29 race.

The first person Tony Kanaan thought of after winning his first CART Indy car race was his mom in his native Brazil. When Max Papis ran out of fuel while leading a half lap from the end of Sunday's U.S. 500 at Michigan Speedway, Kanaan was amazed to find himself in victory lane on a day when his radio malfunctioned and he had to make up a lost lap.

Leave it to Las Vegas oddsmakers to put Danica Patrick's recent victory into perspective heading into today's 92nd Indianapolis 500 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Patrick, who will start fifth, is listed at 8-1 for today's race, according to Bodoglife.com. Solid odds but not good enough to put Patrick into the role as favorite. That title goes to Scott Dixon, who heads into the race as the driver to beat with 11-4 odds. He's followed by Dan Wheldon at 4-1, Tony Kanaan and Helio Castroneves at 5-1 and Marco Andretti at 8-1. Odds for Patrick, whose best finish at the 500 was fourth in 2005, are better when it comes to finishing in the top three at 3-1. Dixon tops this list at 10-11, followed by Wheldon at 11-10, Kanaan and Castroneves at 5-4, Andretti at 5-2 and Ryan Briscoe at 11-4.

Reporting from Indianapolis Drivers racing for Roger Penske and Chip Ganassi again are favorites to win the Indianapolis 500 on the 100th anniversary of the race Sunday. Penske is an Indy legend, with a record 15 of his drivers winning the Memorial Day weekend race. This year, his team includes three-time winner Helio Castroneves, Ryan Briscoe and Australian Will Power, who leads the Izod IndyCar Series point standings. Ganassi's drivers are Dario Franchitti, the two-time and defending Indy 500 winner, and Scott Dixon, who won the race in 2008.

The team of Andretti Green Racing enjoyed a strong run in the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach after appearing poised for a disappointing day. AGR's Tony Kanaan finished third Sunday, Danica Patrick was fourth and Marco Andretti sixth. The fourth driver on the team, Hideki Mutoh, finished 20th after being involved in a crash. The results were a sharp reversal from how the drivers started the race.

Leave it to Las Vegas oddsmakers to put Danica Patrick's recent victory into perspective heading into today's 92nd Indianapolis 500 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Patrick, who will start fifth, is listed at 8-1 for today's race, according to Bodoglife.com. Solid odds but not good enough to put Patrick into the role as favorite. That title goes to Scott Dixon, who heads into the race as the driver to beat with 11-4 odds. He's followed by Dan Wheldon at 4-1, Tony Kanaan and Helio Castroneves at 5-1 and Marco Andretti at 8-1. Odds for Patrick, whose best finish at the 500 was fourth in 2005, are better when it comes to finishing in the top three at 3-1. Dixon tops this list at 10-11, followed by Wheldon at 11-10, Kanaan and Castroneves at 5-4, Andretti at 5-2 and Ryan Briscoe at 11-4.

Tony Kanaan was doubly lucky, Danica Patrick had her best finish, second, and the IndyCar Series is headed for a wild finale after Sunday's Detroit Indy Grand Prix. Kanaan stayed on the track during a late series of pit stops and remained ahead of a last-lap melee to claim his series-best sixth victory of the season and 12th of his career.

After the Toyota Indy 400 race Sunday at California Speedway, maybe the Indy Racing League officials should reconsider their decision to drop the Fontana track from its schedule. On a cool, windy day under overcast skies, the IRL drivers warmed an enthusiastic crowd with a stirring shootout between Honda-powered teammates Dario Franchitti, a Scotsman of Italian descent, and Tony Kanaan, the 2004 series champion from Brazil.

Tony Kanaan took advantage of teammate Dan Wheldon's misfortune to move into the lead, then ran away from the field Sunday to win the Argent Mortgage Indy Grand Prix in Sonoma, Calif. Kanaan beat Buddy Rice by 1.182 seconds -- about eight car-lengths -- for his second IRL IndyCar win of the season, completing a sweep for Andretti Green Racing on Sunday. Owner Michael Andretti's son, Marco, won the Menards Infiniti Pro Series race earlier.

Who was that, doing high-altitude conditioning with Lance Armstrong's trainer in Aspen, Colo., last week? Who was that, pedaling furiously down Biscayne Boulevard in Miami a few days earlier, acting as if he were Lance Armstrong? Both were triathlete-race car driver Tony Kanaan, the gregarious Brazilian who is on the verge of winning the Indy Racing League championship for Andretti Green Racing.

Reporting from Indianapolis Every driver in the Indianapolis 500 gives some nod to the race's famed history and tradition, but perhaps none treats the race and Indianapolis Motor Speedway with more reverence than Dan Wheldon. So it wasn't surprising that moments after the 100th anniversary race reached its chaotic, did-you-see-that climax Sunday, the British driver's voice cracked as he held back tears. "I just kept pushing," said Wheldon, 32, who doesn't have a full-time ride in the Izod IndyCar Series this year but was hired just to drive in the sport's crown-jewel race.

The pole and the crowd might have belonged to Danica Patrick. The trophy -- and the last word -- went to Tony Kanaan. "You guys wanted Danica to win? Sorry," Kanaan said after his Indy Racing League victory Sunday at Kansas Speedway. "You got to wait until next time."

As the pole-sitter for Sunday's 89th Indianapolis 500, Tony Kanaan was invited to New York a day ahead of the 32 other qualifiers who got together Monday for a photo shoot in Times Square. So what did his three Andretti Green Racing teammates do? They went with him. Dario Franchitti, Bryan Herta, Dan Wheldon and Kanaan form what has become one of the most successful -- and unusual -- teams in racing.