 RACE
EVENT: INDY JAPAN 300
LOCATION: TWIN RING MOTEGI, JAPAN
STARTED: No. 14 car - 18TH No. 5 car - 22nd
FINISHED: No. 14 car - 18TH No. 5 car - 20th
 A.J.
Foyt IV was running his best race of the season in the Conseco
G-Force/Toyota when a rookie mistake proved costly just past the
midway point of the Japan Indy 300 at Twin Ring Motegi Sunday
afternoon.
"I had just pitted and we didn't make any changes because the Conseco
car was working good," Foyt IV explained. "I went out on cold tires
and full tanks and it just pushed real bad in turn 3 and I got in the
marbles. I almost had it saved but then it hooked right at the end and
I spun and hit the wall coming off four."
Foyt did an inside spin and smacked the inside retaining wall with the
right side of the car. Foyt had been running 12th at the time of his
pit stop. Foyt sustained an abrasion on his left knee and cut his
thumb but otherwise was uninjured. He was credited with 18th which is
where he started. Qualifying had been rained out and the grid was set
according to practice times.
Shigeaki Hattori also had his day end early when he got together with
Sarah Fisher as the two entered turn 3 on lap 35. Fisher spun and hit
the wall while Hattori pitted with damage to his suspension.
"I went into turn 3 and I didn't know Sarah Fisher was there because
my spotter didn't say anything," Hattori said. "Afterwards he said she
dove down in there but honestly I don't know. We made contact. We
brought it back to the garage and tried to fix it but after a few laps
it developed a vibration so we brought it in. It's a shame because I
really wanted to have a good race in the Epson car in my home
country."
Hattori, who started 22nd, was credited with 20th place in the Epson
G-Force/Toyota car.
 Foyt
IV was not the only one to hit the wall as 12 cars crashed in the
IRL's first ever appearance at the 1.5-mile track located about two
hours north of Tokyo. Several of the crashes involved the leaders
including Tomas Scheckter who crashed while attempting to pass leader
Tony Kanaan. Several laps later his teammate Scott Dixon crashed while
making a pass on leader Kanaan sending both cars into the wall. Dixon
was released but Kanaan was transported to a local hospital for x-rays
of his right leg and left arm.
Scott Sharp won the race under yellow brought out on lap 193 when
Shinji Nakano and Jaques Lazier crashed. Only 11 of the 24 starters
finished the race.
Foyt IV heads to Indianapolis Motor Speedway next week for the Rookie
Orientation Program April 21-22. He will then stay for another day of
testing April 23rd. The track opens for Indy 500 practice on Sunday,
May 4th
NOTES & QUOTES:
A.J. Foyt IV: Conseco No. 14 Dallara/Toyota/Firestone
Shigeaki Hattori: Epson No. 5 G-Force/Toyota/Firestone
A.J. Foyt IV on Japan: "I'm looking forward to racing over there in
the Conseco 14. When I was in Dallas for the Cup race last weekend, I
talked to a couple of drivers who have raced there (P.J. Jones and
Robby Gordon) about the track. They said that turn 1- 2 is a big
sweeper which you can take flat but you have to downshift going into
turn 3 - 4 because it is so much tighter. They compared it to Gateway
[in E. St. Louis, Ill.]. It should be pretty challenging."
Shigeaki Hattori on Twin Ring Motegi: "I am really looking forward to
racing in Japan for a lot of reasons. The last time I raced at Twin
Ring Motegi it was huge--there were so many fans and sponsors. It was
really great." [About added pressure?] "I don't think I will feel more
pressure because I always try my best. I think I will be more relaxed
because of the support of my family and friends, and it will be more
fun for me. It will definitely be more exciting racing there for the
first time in the Epson IRL car."
Hattori's 10th place finish in Phoenix marks his first top-10 in the
Epson-sponsored No. 5 Dallara/Toyota driving for A.J. Foyt. "It gives
us some momentum going into Japan," Hattori said. "Homestead was tough
because I was with a brand new team with a car (G-Force/Toyota) that
we tested just one day. Phoenix was tough because I had a brand new
car (Dallara/Toyota) but we were able to find a comfortable set-up."
Hattori is currently 15th in the IRL IndyCar Series standings.
The Japan Indy 300 marks Hattori's 27th start and A.J. Foyt IV's third
(3rd) Indy car start. This event will mark the 514th Indy car start
for team owner A.J. Foyt with 369 of those coming as a driver. The
number 514 also happens to be part of the tail number on his private
jet incorporating his car No. 14 and his five (5) Indy 500 victories.
Foyt is in his 50th year of professional motorsports.
The Japan Indy 300 marks the first time back that Hattori is driving a
race car in his home country since 1999 when he drove in the CART
champ car race there. Hattori had a good race going until he had
mechanical problems which forced him to retire from the race. He
placed 20th.
Hattori returned to Japan March 27th for the first time since January
to visit with family and friends and meet with some of his sponsors
including Epson, Aisin, Aisin AW and Advics.
Prepping for Japan: A.J. Foyt IV helped the team pack up his Conseco
Indy cars and equipment last week for the trip to Japan. However, his
own preparations began two weeks ago when he and his teammate Shigeaki
Hattori went to dinner at a Japanese restaurant in Los Angeles (both
drivers were in town for a Toyota appearance in Torrance the next
day). Said Hattori: "He used chopsticks and was very good with them.
Me? I used a fork, it is much easier."
The trip to Japan will be the first trip overseas for A.J. IV whose
foreign country travel extends only to Mexico which borders his home
state of Texas. His grandfather A.J. has traveled to Europe, Australia
and New Zealand but this trip will also be his first visit to Japan.
"I had planned to go over there a couple times in the past, but I got
hurt in a race car and had to cancel my trips. I think the trip will
be good but from what everyone tells me, it's awful expensive over
there which is not so good. It should be interesting," Foyt said. |
