From: Michael Powell 
 
INDYCAR SERIES STARS FINISH SIXTH, SEVENTH, NINTH AT IROC
 
FORT WORTH, Texas, April 2, 2004 # IRL IndyCar# Series stars Scott Sharp,
Helio Castroneves and Scott Dixon finished sixth, seventh and ninth,
respectively, in the second race of the Crown Royal International Race of
Champions series on April 2 at Texas Motor Speedway.
 
Sharp was involved in the best battles of the 100-mile race, which was won by
World of Outlaws standout Danny Lasoski. The 1996 IndyCar Series co-champion
ran side-by-side with NASCAR NEXTEL Cup star Ryan Newman and NASCAR Craftsman
Truck Series driver Travis Kvapil throughout the race.
 
#There was a lot of side-by-side racing tonight and I learned a lot,# Sharp
said. #It was fun, but the car was tight all night long. I knew I had to take
care of the tires, and I had to baby it until the caution. That cost me a few
spots, but after the caution we had a better car because I took care of the
right front. It was fun, a good time.#
 
Castroneves, a two-time Indianapolis 500 winner, ran as high as fourth, but
fell back to the rear of the field after his car pushed on the restart after
the competition yellow on lap 52.
 
#I don#t know what happened,# Castroneves said. #The car just went straight.
Maybe there were marbles on the tires, but I knew when I saw Jimmie (Johnson)
behind Kevin (Harvick), I thought #Man, I want to be behind them.# I don#t know
why I just took a chance. If something good happened, then it would have been
good. It#s a shame, but I#m happy for Danny. He did a heck of a job and
deserves this.#
 
Dixon, the 2003 IndyCar Series champion, struggled with an ill-handling race
car throughout the all-star event.
 
#It was all right,# he said. #It was different. You could drive the cars more
as opposed to the drafting at Daytona. We just had a bad push. We couldn#t get
the car down and carry the speed.#
 
Castroneves is the highest IndyCar Series driver in the IROC points. He is one
four drivers tied for sixth with 17 points. Sharp is 10th with 15 points. Dixon
is 11th with 13 points.
 
The next race in the four-race IROC series is on Sept. 9 at Richmond
International Raceway.
 
***
 
The 2004 IRL IndyCar Series season continues with the Indy Japan 300 at 11:30
p.m. (EDT) on April 16 at Twin Ring Motegi. The race will be broadcast live on
ESPN2 and the IMS Radio Network. The Menards Infiniti Pro Series Futaba Freedom
100 will take place at 2 p.m. (EDT) on May 22 at the Indianapolis Motor
Speedway. The race will be broadcast live by ESPN2.
 
___ Internet Rex 2.29
 


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