[WestCoast]

LONG BEACH, Calif. - Paul Tracy is returning to the Indianapolis 500 for the first time since 2002, and this time he wants to leave no doubt about being the winner.

KV Racing Technology, co-owned by former open-wheel champion Jimmy Vasser and Kevin Kalkhoven, announced Friday that the 40-year-old Tracy will be teamed next month at Indy with full-time driver Mario Moraes. Tracy will race the No. 15 car with sponsorship from insurance firm Geico.

The last time the longtime open-wheel start raced at Indy, he lost to Helio Castroneves in one of the most controversial finishes in the history of the famed Brickyard.

The race ended under caution and the dispute was over whether Tracy had passed Castroneves before or after the yellow flag came out. Tony George, who founded the Indy Racing League and whose family owns the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, eventually made the decision in favor of Castroneves, leaving Tracy, then driving in the rival CART series, angry and frustrated.

Asked if he was going to get any extra track time before practice opens for the May 24 race, Tracy quipped: "We're not going to take the rookie orientation program. I don't think they let past winners do that."

Later, he said, "I feel and I know that I won the race, but I have nothing to show for it other than a second-place finish.

"For me, I divide race drivers up into groups. There's a group of guys like Dario (Franchitti), myself and (Scott) Dixon, (Tony) Kanaan and the top guys. They're going there to win. They're not going there just to qualify and run and hope they finish well. I consider myself one of those."

Tracy won't get the added benefit of extra seat time as KV Racing says it will not field an additional entry for the Kansas race which preceeds the month of May. But Tracy says based on what he saw in the season opening race, it won't take him long to get up to speed and be competitive.

"Well, as I was laying on the couch watching the disaster of a race at St. Pete, I felt like I could get out there and clean everybody's clock, the way they were driving," quipped the former open-wheel champion. So from that standpoint I feel I've still got the skills to do this. Like I said, my last race, you can only judge somebody on their last race, and the last race I came, I got off the couch and finished in the top five."

"We're going to do the best we can, and we're going there to win. Nothing else really matters to me other than winning the race. Finishing second, third, fourth is really not an option in my book. So that's what we're going to try to do."

Tracy raced for 17 years in the series that began as CART and then became Champ Car. He won the championship in 2003 and his 31 victories make him the leading active driver in the open-wheel sport.

Champ Car was absorbed into the IndyCar Series at the beginning of 2008 and Tracy lost his ride when team owner Gerald Forsythe decided not to field an IndyCar team. Tracy did run two races last year, finishing 11th at Long Beach in what was the final Champ Car event, and a very impressive fourth at Edmonton in a last-minute deal with Walker Racing.

"It's a great thing, not only for KV, but for IndyCar racing," Vasser said of Tracy's at least temporary return. "Hopefully, it's going to lead into some other things for the future as well. He's a great champion and has so many great achievements. Look at his numbers, they're phenomenal.

"Paul's going to get right up to speed, I'm confident of that," added Vasser, also a former CART champion. "You saw what he did at Edmonton last year, although it was on a road course. Paul has showed himself to be one of the toughest competitors on ovals. I think he's going to be a great addition to our lineup and will help Mario, as well."

Right now Tracy's deal is for the Indy 500 but there is hope that he will be part of the two Canadian stops on the IndyCar circuit this season, Toronto and Edmonton.

"We're working on it," said Tracy. "Obviously it's a tough economic time right now, and I'm fortunate enough that I've got good sponsors that have helped me through this economic time. I've got some personal sponsors with Monster that have stuck behind me. So for Geico to come on board, we're going to do the best we can to generate as much media exposure, excitement around their product and their brand, and if that leads to more, then that would be icing on the cake. But there's been no promises made."

[WestCoast]

As you may notice by my Avatar, I’m a bit biased towards PT. Not so much for his periodic stupid on-track manners, but for his colour and pure determinations.
I always saw him as a "Mansell" type.
Anyway, it’s interesting to see him putting on a run for the pole, right out of the box, after being absent for 2 years.
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Indy Notes - May 5th - Tracy schools the rookies

Written by Scott Keller · May 6, 2009
The Indy 500 on-track activities have begun. Well, sort of. The "Rookie" orientation program was run today at the Brickyard, with a few non-rookies running refresher courses. Most notably, Paul Tracy and Scott Sharp were in action today, putting on a little competition for the fastest lap by the "old guys". Tracy ended up posting the best lap of the day at 223.089 mph.
"I am just excited to be back on track," Tracy said. "The GEICO - KV Racing Technology team did a great job today. The mechanics, the engineers, everyone on the team did great. The first few laps were a little hair-raising, but the car was good, just like Jimmy Vasser said it would be, so I just had to keep my foot down. I want to thank GEICO, Kevin Kalkhoven, my personal sponsor Monster and Firestone and Honda, who are all contributing to this program, as well as everyone who is involved on the team for making this an exciting day for me."
The top time by Tracy was not a huge surprise. The 2003 Champ Car champion has plenty of previous experience at the brickyard, and raced well in a Dallara last year at Edmonton.
Scott Sharp returned to Indy for the first time since 2007, and put up fast times today as well in his Panther entry. Sharp won the pole in 2001, and more than knows the fast way around Indy.
Robert Doornbos continues to impress the Indy Car world with his ability to learn the ovals quickly. After qualifying in the front row at Kansas, Doornbos posted third quick time on his first day ever on the 2.5 mile oval.

PRACTICE TIMES 5/5/09
1 - Paul Tracy - 223.089
2 - Scott Sharp - 221.878
3 - Robert Doornbos - 221.735
4 - Raphael Matos - 218.613
5 - Alex Tagliani - 218.333
6 - Mike Conway - 217.063
7 - Nelson Phillippe - 214.786
8 - Alex Lloyd - 213.032
9 - Stanton Barrett - 207.522

[onearmsteve]

i believe he has a real shot at winning the race.

i was fan of Rick Mears as a kid, so naturally PT became my guy when he took over.

it's good to see him back.