Honda Racing Report
Saturday, July 15, 2006
Firestone Indy 200 Race Report
Circuit: Nashville Superpeedway (1.33-mile concrete oval), Lebanon, Tenn.
2005 Winner: Dario Franchitti (Honda) 133.089 mph average
Weather: Warm, humid, 84 degrees F
Top 10 Race Results:
| Ps. | St. | Driver | Team | Engine/Chassis | Laps | Average Speed/Notes |
| 1 | 3 | Scott Dixon | Target Chip Ganassi | Honda Dallara | 200 | 161.205 mph average speed |
| 2 | 1 | Dan Wheldon | Target Chip Ganassi | Honda Dallara | 200 | -0.1176 seconds |
| 3 | 7 | Vitor Meira | Panther Racing | Honda Dallara | 200 | -1.2756 seconds |
| 4 | 10 | Danica Patrick | Rahal Letterman Racing | Honda Dallara | 200 | -2.5019 seconds |
| 5 | 4 | Helio Castroneves | Marlboro Team Penske | Honda Dallara | 200 | -3.5547 seconds |
| 6 | 5 | Dario Franchitti | Andretti Green Racing | Honda Dallara | 200 | -11.9449 seconds |
| 7 | 17 | Jeff Simmons | Rahal Letterman Racing | Honda Dallara | 199 | Running |
| 8 | 18 | Marco Andretti | Andretti Green Racing | Honda Dallara | 199 | Running |
| 9 | 13 | Ryan Briscoe | Dreyer & Reinbold | Honda Dallara | 199 | Running |
| 10 | 14 | Ed Carpenter | Vision Racing | Honda Dallara | 199 | Running |
Dixon Leads Ganassi 1-2 Finish in Nashville
Target Chip Ganassi Racing's Scott Dixon scored his second Indy Racing League IndyCar Series victory of 2006 by out-running teammate Dan Wheldon and Panther Racing's Vitor Meira in a 26-lap dash to the finish Saturday night in front of a packed house at the Nashville Superspeedway.
It was another successful race weekend for Honda and the engineers of Honda Performance Development, as the field of Honda HI6R Indy V-8 engines once again performed reliably throughout practice, qualifying and tonight's 366-mile race.
Dixon started the Firestone Indy 200 from the inside of the second row, but brushed wheels with Helio Castroneves as the field packed into the first turn at the start of the 200-lap event. Both drivers were able to continue with only minor damage, but Dixon fell slightly off the pace of early race leaders Wheldon, Sam Hornish Jr. and Tony Kanaan.
However the 2003 series champion was never too far away from the lead pack and when Wheldon made a final "insurance" stop for fuel under caution on Lap 133, it was Dixon taking over in the lead. The final sprint was set up when Kosuke Matsuura - who led five laps and looked set for a top-three result - crashed without injury in Turn 4 on Lap 164. As the green flag waved on Lap 174, both Meira and Wheldon made runs at Dixon's lead, but without success.
Danica Patrick finished fourth for Rahal Letterman Racing, her best IndyCar result since also finishing fourth at the 2005 Indianapolis 500, with Castoneves hanging on for a fifth-place finish despite an ill-handling car resulting from the opening-lap contact.
Tonight's Firestone Indy 200 was the first in a run of three consecutive IndyCar Series race weekends, with the final short oval of the season, The Milwaukee Mile, on July 23, followed by the ultra-fast 2.0-mile Michigan International Speedway event on July 30.
IndyCar Series Drivers' Championship (after 9 of 14 races)
| 1. Sam Hornish Jr. | 316 points (3 wins) | 6. Tony Kanaan | 224 |
| 2. Helio Castroneves | 311 (3 wins) | 7. Dario Franchitti |
203 |
| 3. Scott Dixon | 310 (2 wins) | 8. Marco Andretti | 196 |
| 4. Dan Wheldon | 300 (1 win) | 9. Danica Patrick | 191 |
| 5. Vitor Meira | 227 | 10. Kosuke Matsuura | 190 |
Rookie of the Year:
| 1. Marco Andretti | 196 points |
| 2. Jeff Simmons | 107 |
| 3. P.J. Chesson | 54 |
Scott Dixon (#9 Target Chip Ganassi Racing Honda) Started 3rd, finished 1st, his second victory of 2006, and first oval track win since Richmond, 2003: "It's been a long time since I've won on an oval. I don't think I had the fastest car tonight, but we may have been the quickest in traffic. The guys did a superb job in the pits and we made great fuel mileage. It was a fantastic night for Target Chip Ganassi Racing with our 1-2 finish."
Robert Clarke (President, Honda Performance Development) on Honda reliability
in today's race:
"We're entering a stretch of three consecutive race weekends, one
of the most challenging parts of the season. Once again, we had great reliability
from the Honda engines throughout the weekend. Our congratulations to Scott
Dixon, Dan Wheldon and Target Chip Ganassi Racing organization for an excellent
1-2 finish."
