The Indianapolis Star from Indianapolis, Indiana • Page 28

D6 MONDAY, AUGUST 1,2005 1.0 Sports THE INDIANAPOLIS STAR WWW.INDYSTAR.COM IRL NOTEBOOK llerta Patrick's move earns penalty Firestone Indy 400 (Top finishers) Driver Car ent reasons. Dixon, who qualified a season-best fourth, had been the fastest in the morning practice session. He finished 19th. Castroneves entered the race fifth in the standings, 103 points behind Wheldon. The 21st-place finish dropped the Brazilian to sixth, 131 points off the pace and nearly out of the championship chase.

Ed Carpenter also retired with an engine failure. Toyota's top finish belonged to Hornish in fifth. Etc. Sunday's crowd was estimated at 35,000. Enge, who fractured bones in his back in an accident two weeks ago in Nashville, is expected to be examined Wednesday to see if he can return to the Panther Racing car in time for the next IRL race, Aug.

14 at Kentucky Speedway. Buddy Rice suffered a broken driveshaft for the second time in three races. Herta became the third pole sitter to win this season. Call Star reporter Curt Cavin at (317) 444-6409. started when BelL who was in eighth place in the lead pack, lost control and spun while following Sam Hornish Jr.

"When we got in the corner, he (Hornish) decided to come across my nose, so I started to back out of it because I lost all the down-force," said Bell, who as Tomas Enge's replacement was competing in his first IRL race since the end of last season. "As soon as I washed up outside of him it caught me again. "I saved it a few times but it just started dancing back and forth and finally stepped sideways." Hornish could not be reached for comment, but a Team Penske spokesman disputed the driver's role in the incident, saying Hornish was "75 feet" in front of Bell. Toyotas show well, some fail Toyota's Michigan engine was clearly stronger than the ones used in previous races, but it wasn't without problems. Helio Castroneves and Scott Dixon were among the front-runners when they retired in the second half of the race.

Both exits were costly for differ No one injured in late-race crash. From D1 shootout created by the weekend's first accident. Four cars were collected in a horrifying tangle in the second turn. Townsend Bell spun in the middle of the pack, leaving Jaques Lazier nowhere to go. Lazier was struck from behind by Kosuke Matsuura.

Lazier's car made side-to-side contact with Bell's. Roger Yasu-kawa was also involved. No one was injured. Herta got a solid restart amid pressure from Kanaan and Wheldon, who battled side-by-side, allowing Herta extra room and bringing Scheckter nearer to them. Scheckter initially accused Wheldon of blocking, but he later acknowledged the AGR drivers were battling each other as fiercely as anyone.

Wheldon finished second, Scheckter third. Herta's victory margin was 0.0374 seconds, the second-closest of the season next to Ka-naan's victory July 3 over Wheldon at Kansas Speedway. It was the second IRL victory for Herta, who was born in nearby Warren, Mich. His first came at Kansas in 2003. "It would be easy to get insecure and say I'm the only (AGR driver) that hadn't won a race," said Herta, whose car frequently uses experimental parts that help the team.

"But they never put that pressure on me." Herta built a big lead in the middle of the race, pushing the advantage to 12.7 seconds before the first caution came on the 121st lap. Wheldon said the pack of cars chasing Herta had conceded the advantage, so they turned to conserving fuel Wheldon praised his teammates for working in tandem. Every time he sensed his car was about to drop back, Kanaan, for example, would pull out of line to create the aerodynamic tow he needed to stay close to the front. By Curt Cavin curtcavinindystar.com BROOKLYN, Mich. Danica Patrick made a bold move Sunday to regain a lost lap at Michigan International Speedway, but race leader Bryan Herta wasn't impressed.

Herta said she went below the white line to do it, something Indy Racing League chief steward Brian Barnhart had said in the morning drivers' meeting was not going to be allowed. "He said it 20 times if he said it once," Herta said of Barnhart. Patrick was ordered to move behind Herta at the first available opportunity. Herta dropped to fifth before recovering to win the Firestone Indy 400. But he didn't like having to lift off the throttle to avoid contact or being pushed up the track.

"It clearly wasn't in the vain of clean racing," Herta said. Patrick later retired from the race on the 164th lap with what appeared to be. a Honda engine failure. It was her first mechanical failure of the season. She finished 20th among the 23 drivers.

AUTO RACING ROUNDUP Bourdais Champ Car World Series points leader tames San Jose's 'challenging' track. Associated Press Sebastien Bourdais drove an almost perfect race on an imperfect track Sunday, pulling away at the end to win the San Jose (Calif.) Grand Prix. "I think I was in the preferred position, but it was not an easy day," said Bourdais, who started from the pole and led 63 of the 93 The combination of a washboard-like track and looming concrete walls on the narrow downtown street circuit took out half of the 18-car field during the 75-min-ute timed race. But Bourdais, the reigning Champ Car World Series champion, managed to avoid the pitfalls and came away with his second win in a row and third of the season. Bourdais attributed his 13th ca Brag Brim) The Star I could get used to this: Bryan Herta shows off his trophy for winning the race.

With a smile on his face, Wheldon said they purposefully shuffled Sam Hornish Jr. out of the top group several times. "Hornish must be frustrated," he said, adding that the AGR drivers "like (Scheckter) better" so they didn't do it to him as much. Scheckter nearly cost himself the chance to contend when he violated the pit road speed limit on the first stop (lap 39). The penalty was an extra drive down pit road at a reduced speed, time that nearly allowed Herta to lap him.

Scheckter, who dogged Herta in the first part of the race, was a factor once back in the lead pack. Still, Scheckter acknowledged Herta has the best car. "I thought he must be conserving fuel (in the first segment) and then he pitted (only) one lap before me," Scheckter said. "I knew at that stage he was going to be pretty tough to beat." Scheckter couldn't believe how aggressively the AGR drivers battled one another "It's amazing they actually speak after the race," he said but Herta wasn't worried. He knew Wheldon and Kanaan, who made it three-wide on lap 195, would not risk a crash.

"They had my back," he said. Call Star reporter Curt Cavin at (317) 444-6409. way to victory lane drivers on the lead lap. Raikkonen wins In Hungary Midway through the blistering Hungarian Grand Prix in Budapest, Kimr Raikkonen pulled his McLaren race car into pit row. It was a dubious sight, considering Raikkonen's recent string of mechanical troubles.

But there would be no breakdown this time as Raikkonen used the pits to perfection and raced away from Michael Schumacher and the rest of the field for his fourth victory of the seasoa Raikkonen finished 355 seconds ahead of Schumacher, a pole sitter for the first time this season. Ralf Schumacher was third, 36.1 seconds back. Fram Autolite Nationals Doug Kalitta took over the points lead in Top Fuel with his fourth win of the season at the Fram Autolite NHRA Nationals at Sonoma, Calif. Kalitta had 4.665-second run at 1. Bryan Herta 2.

Dan Wheldon 3. Tomas Scheckter 4. Tony Kanaan 5. Sam Hornish Jr. 6.

Buddy Lazier 7. Scott Sharp 8. Dario Franchitti 9. Patrick Carpentier 10. Ryan Briscoe D-H D-H DC D-H D-T D-C P-H D-H D-T P-T Chassis: D-Dallara, P-Panoz Engines: H-Honda, T-Toyota, C-Chevrolet Series points leaders: Wheldon, 417; Hornish, 339; Kanaan, 338 Results: Entire field.

D5 Bell blames Hornish Townsend Bell was running strong in his return to the IRL, but he had only a damaged car to show for it at the end of the day. Bell's car was struck hard by a sliding Jaques Lazier on the 182nd lap of 200. The incident knows the reer victory to the work done by his team Saturday night, taking apart the car and virtually rebuilding it in an effort to get him through the rough race. Then he broke a suspension part in Sunday morning's warm-up. "The track is really challenging, definitely the roughest one we've ever been on," Bourdais said.

"We broke something on the car every time we went on the track. They wanted to make sure the car stayed together." Paul Tracy, trailing Bourdais in the season standings, did everything he could to catch the 26-year-old Frenchman, but he came up 3.724 seconds short. "I was just following Sebastien at the end," Tracy said. "He got faster, so we just decided to follow him home for second place." Oriol Servia, Bourdais' NewmanHaas Racing teammate, was third, followed by Justin Wilson, Mario Dominguez and rookies Ti-mo Glock, Ronnie Bremer and Bjom Wirdheim, the only other NFL NOTEBOOK football. I started thinking about my new teammates.

I remembered that Mike Shanahan had stuck, his neck out for me. And that I had signed a contract. I am going to honor that contract." Boldin gets new deal The Cardinals agreed to a contract extension with receiver An-quan Boldin that will keep him with the team through the 2010 season. The six-year, $23.5 million contract includes signing bonuses of $5 million this year and $5 million in 2006. Boldin missed a minicamp in the spring because he wanted a more favorable deal, especially in easuu! Indiana's Only Medical Group Exclusively Devoted to Natural Hair Restoration Excellence! as featured in The Indianapolis Star The Only Guaranteed Griming Permanent Solution to Hair Loss.

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pre'ious site oj Robert nomas Medical Associates Exclusively Devoted to Hair Restoration litest ffHDau mm RESORT tk SPA 319.90 mph to beat Doug Herbert's 4.603 at 319.98 for his fifth victory at Sonoma. He moved 16 points ahead of Tony Schumacher in the standings. Gary Scelzi cut Robert Hight's series lead to 16 points with his third Funny Car win of the season. He had a run of 4.984 at 29521 to defeat teammate Ron Capps (5.079 at 293.60) for his 32nd career victory. Greg Anderson regained the series lead in Pro Stock with his fourth victory of the season and the 35th of his career with a 6.732 at 205.63 to outrun Kurt Johnson's 6.760 at 204.23.

Andrew Hines turned in a national record performance in Pro Stock Motorcycle, powering to a final run of 7253 at 186.46 to beat Karen Stoffer's 7343 at 181.64. Legge prevails again Katherine Legge, the only woman in the Toyota Atlantic Series, won the event in San Jose, for her second straight victory and third of the season. Chiefs agreed to terms with first-round pick LB Derrick Johnson and the Falcons signed first-round draft pick WR Roddy White. The Cardinals agreed to terms with second-round pick RB J.J. Arrington and the Seahawks signed second-round pick LB Lo-fa Tatupu.

The Panthers will honor the late Sam Mills by retiring his No. 51 at halftime of their Aug. 13 preseason game. Mills died April 18 after a nearly two-year battle with cancer. cover Harrison, Reggie Wayne or Brandon Stokley, he can do the job against anyone.

But he, too, had an eye-opening moment in one of his first practices. Stokley provided the lesson. "I kind of lost him," Hayden said. "He ran his route, stuck it in and then stuck it back out and I was just kind of looking for him. I lost him.

As I turned around, he was catching the balL" Hayden also has been in awe of Manning's quick release. "Sometimes, I'll be in the back watching and Peyton will make a throw and I'll say in my head, 'Oh my God, that's kind of he said. "But it's the NFL. Everything is going to happen faster." Dungy can't help but chuckle at times when his defenders are at a loss against Manning, who threw a league-record 49 touchdown passes last season. But the coach reminds his defenders they need to concentrate on their fundamentals.

"We have to go back to the tape and learn," Dungy said. "The guys have to understand that they are focused in on their technique, assignments and doing their jobs. Some of the things can be corrected and some you do have to chalk up to good throws." If nothing else after three days at camp, Jackson and Hayden are still brimming with confidence. "I have high expectations for myself," Jackson said. "Whatever I'm doing, I feel I have so much ability, all I need to do is continue to work hard and maximize my ability, then everybody will be happy." Call Star reporter Phillip B.

Wilson at (317) 444-6642. From Star news services Jerry Rice almost had a last-second change of heart about trying to play a 21st season in the NFL. Rice told the Denver Post he showed up late for the team's reporting day, only after a last-second decision to catch a flight from his home in California to Denver. "I was torn," Rice said. He said he called coach Mike Shanahan and told him he was having second thoughts.

Shanahan told Rice he could retire if he wanted but that there was no truth to media reports that Rice had no future with the Broncos. "There was a very good possibility that I was not going to get on that plane," Rice said. "There was weight on my shoulders. But then I started thinking that the hunger is still there and the flashes are still there. I started thinking about how much I enjoy ft i 1 1 i.

1 light of the much larger contract given to fellow wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald. Etc. WR Hines Ward became the Steelers' first major holdout in 12 years, keeping his promise not to report to training camp without a contract extension. Sean Taylor reported to Redskins training camp, ending an offseason in which he snubbed his coaches and was arrested The Jackson Hayden expected to contribute in secondary. From D1 gins with the Colts playing Atlanta on Saturday in Tokyo will help coach Tony Dungy decide the rookie's readiness.

That also applies to cornerback Kelvin Hayden, the second-round pick out of Illinois. "It's going to be a learning experience and they'll have their ups and downs throughout preseason," said Dungy, a defensive back when he played. "We've just got to get them in there and get them exposed to things. "I've learned, especially with DBs, it's not always who does well early on. Some talented guys may not play as much as we would think they would play until later on.

But these guys are talented and they'll end up coming to the top eventually." Saturday's morning practice showed the highs and lows. Both rookies made plays in drills, yet when practice shifted to red-zone situations, they weren't as sharp. Quarterback Peyton Manning was in two-time league MVP form, carving up the coverage for scores. "That was a new experience for them," Dungy said. "Everything they come across is going to be new and they're going to have to learn and grow through it.

But they're doing fine." Hayden, like Jackson, hasn't dwelled on the unpleasant plays. He rationalizes that if he can Hour of Pleasure in 5 Minutes! Now IvailaUd Fast Acting Medication, Works in Minutes! It's Just A Short Drive to Play One Of The Country's Favorite Historic Courses. The Championship Donald Ross, Hill Course! Only $59GT With Cart Monday-Thursday Bring this voucher to redeem your Summer Special Unlimited Play on the Hill Course Call Today for Unlimited Play 1800-963-3577 IT'S YOUR BIRTHDAY? Your Round Is On Us! And visit us on-line at www.firenchlick.com for our new golf and resort overnight packages 'Unlimited Play offer good through September 2005. Unlimited play offer for one day of play only. Not good with any other offer.

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