Kanaan ready to move on after cockpit fire
August 1, 2009
SPARTA, Ky. (AP) -It wasn't exactly the way Tony Kanaan wanted to get back in the news.
Then again, the IndyCar series star knows there are worse ways to make headlines than by deftly avoiding disaster the way he did during last week's race at Edmonton.
The 2004 series champion was exiting his pit on lap 34 when the fuel hose broke, dousing him with gasoline. His No. 11 Honda caught fire as he pulled away from his stall, and he quickly found himself engulfed in flames.
The fire spread from his helmet to his firesuit. Doing a quick mental checklist in his head, Kanaan took off the steering wheel, held his breath and waited for help.
He didn't have to wait long. Members of nearby crews rushed to Kanaan's aide, throwing water on him as he pulled himself free and out of danger.
Kanaan suffered superficial first-degree burns to his face, yet hours before Saturday night's race at Kentucky Speedway the only evidence of his fiery escape were a couple of small burn marks on his chin, ones that were barely noticeable beneath his stubble.
``I'm lucky,'' Kanaan said. ``I couldn't be here. I could be in a hospital right now. I could be hurt. I could be out of the car.''
Instead, Kanaan was back at the track, and just shakes his head at his sudden spike in notoriety. The fire became a staple on highlight shows and he made at least one national television appearance to talk about it. He's spent most of the last week sheepishly accepting the well-wishes of fans thankful he wasn't more seriously injured.
``It looked a lot worse than it was,'' he said. ``Obviously a couple of things went wrong, but five things after that went right, so that's when you minimize the damages.''
Andretti Green Racing teammate Danica Patrick got an eyeful of Kanaan's ordeal. She was pulling into the pit as Kanaan was leaving and worried for a brief moment the fire would find its way onto her car.
Only after the race did Patrick get a chance to see what happened, though she's not surprised that Kanaan found a way to avoid disaster.
``He's like the Incredible Hulk,'' she said. ``He just keeps coming back and he's tough.''
The 34-year-old Brazilian has needed to rely on that toughness during easily the most difficult season of his career. He entered Saturday night's race ninth in points while enduring a series of setbacks that started when the suspension on his No. 11 Honda broke midway through the Indy 500, sending him into the wall at 190 mph.
He's only finished three of the last eight races, something he blames on a mix of bad luck and maybe a little karma. He knows few drivers can say they've finished in the top six in points every year of their IndyCar career. He knows even fewer of his rivals can match his 13 career victories and 85 Top 10s in 109 starts.
Kanaan has seen plenty of the series' stars, including Scott Dixon and Dario Franchitti, endure a rough stretch. He's stayed above the fray. Until now at least.
``We're really spoiled,'' he said. ``I just need to get this monkey off my back, so 2010 is a better number than 2009 for me.''
---
SARAH'S BACK, FOR NOW: Ask Sarah Fisher what she's learned during her two years as owner and operator of Sarah Fisher Racing and she jokes ``let me get my book out.''
She's still trying to write the next chapter, which she hopes will include a ride next year.
Things remain very much up in the air for now. Discount retail chain Dollar General, which signed on to sponsor her at several oval events this season, hasn't yet committed to 2010.
Fisher would love to have them back, but knows it might not happen even though the company is one of the few that has thrived during the economic downturn.
The first female pole winner in IndyCar history jokes that she wonders if some of Dollar General's good fortune will come her way.
``Everything has to align,'' she said. ``We have a vision for where we want this team to go and I'm sure they have a vision too. I'm not writing them out, they're our primary sponsor.''
Kentucky is Fisher's fourth start of the season, and while she hasn't cracked the top 10, she also has finished every race.
``This is as good a car as I've had in awhile,'' she said. ``I'm excited about where we're at.''
---
LABOR DAY PAINS?: The addition of races in Brazil and Alabama and the loss of races in Richmond and Milwaukee aren't the only changes to the 2010 IndyCar schedule.
The series also moved the date of next year's race at Kentucky from early August to Labor Day weekend. The move will give promoters a difficult task: trying to convince fans to come out to the race on the same weekend as the opening of the college football season.
Next year's race runs up against the annual showdown between Kentucky and Louisville. There's also competition from the Riverfest celebration in Cincinnati, an event that draws hundreds of thousands of people annually.
``I know there's a lot of competition, a lot of things to do, but there's also a lot of people with a lot of time,'' said track president Mark Simendinger. ``If you think you're going to drop in on Labor Day and not have anybody else doing anything, you're wrong. But it's a very big market we draw from.''
The race has been met with steady - if unspectacular - crowds during its 10-year run in Kentucky. The series has averaged about 55,000 fans at track, a little under the 65,000-seat capacity.
August 1, 2009
SPARTA, Ky. (AP) -It wasn't exactly the way Tony Kanaan wanted to get back in the news.
Then again, the IndyCar series star knows there are worse ways to make headlines than by deftly avoiding disaster the way he did during last week's race at Edmonton.
The 2004 series champion was exiting his pit on lap 34 when the fuel hose broke, dousing him with gasoline. His No. 11 Honda caught fire as he pulled away from his stall, and he quickly found himself engulfed in flames.
The fire spread from his helmet to his firesuit. Doing a quick mental checklist in his head, Kanaan took off the steering wheel, held his breath and waited for help.
He didn't have to wait long. Members of nearby crews rushed to Kanaan's aide, throwing water on him as he pulled himself free and out of danger.
Kanaan suffered superficial first-degree burns to his face, yet hours before Saturday night's race at Kentucky Speedway the only evidence of his fiery escape were a couple of small burn marks on his chin, ones that were barely noticeable beneath his stubble.
``I'm lucky,'' Kanaan said. ``I couldn't be here. I could be in a hospital right now. I could be hurt. I could be out of the car.''
Instead, Kanaan was back at the track, and just shakes his head at his sudden spike in notoriety. The fire became a staple on highlight shows and he made at least one national television appearance to talk about it. He's spent most of the last week sheepishly accepting the well-wishes of fans thankful he wasn't more seriously injured.
``It looked a lot worse than it was,'' he said. ``Obviously a couple of things went wrong, but five things after that went right, so that's when you minimize the damages.''
Andretti Green Racing teammate Danica Patrick got an eyeful of Kanaan's ordeal. She was pulling into the pit as Kanaan was leaving and worried for a brief moment the fire would find its way onto her car.
Only after the race did Patrick get a chance to see what happened, though she's not surprised that Kanaan found a way to avoid disaster.
``He's like the Incredible Hulk,'' she said. ``He just keeps coming back and he's tough.''
The 34-year-old Brazilian has needed to rely on that toughness during easily the most difficult season of his career. He entered Saturday night's race ninth in points while enduring a series of setbacks that started when the suspension on his No. 11 Honda broke midway through the Indy 500, sending him into the wall at 190 mph.
He's only finished three of the last eight races, something he blames on a mix of bad luck and maybe a little karma. He knows few drivers can say they've finished in the top six in points every year of their IndyCar career. He knows even fewer of his rivals can match his 13 career victories and 85 Top 10s in 109 starts.
Kanaan has seen plenty of the series' stars, including Scott Dixon and Dario Franchitti, endure a rough stretch. He's stayed above the fray. Until now at least.
``We're really spoiled,'' he said. ``I just need to get this monkey off my back, so 2010 is a better number than 2009 for me.''
---
SARAH'S BACK, FOR NOW: Ask Sarah Fisher what she's learned during her two years as owner and operator of Sarah Fisher Racing and she jokes ``let me get my book out.''
She's still trying to write the next chapter, which she hopes will include a ride next year.
Things remain very much up in the air for now. Discount retail chain Dollar General, which signed on to sponsor her at several oval events this season, hasn't yet committed to 2010.
Fisher would love to have them back, but knows it might not happen even though the company is one of the few that has thrived during the economic downturn.
The first female pole winner in IndyCar history jokes that she wonders if some of Dollar General's good fortune will come her way.
``Everything has to align,'' she said. ``We have a vision for where we want this team to go and I'm sure they have a vision too. I'm not writing them out, they're our primary sponsor.''
Kentucky is Fisher's fourth start of the season, and while she hasn't cracked the top 10, she also has finished every race.
``This is as good a car as I've had in awhile,'' she said. ``I'm excited about where we're at.''
---
LABOR DAY PAINS?: The addition of races in Brazil and Alabama and the loss of races in Richmond and Milwaukee aren't the only changes to the 2010 IndyCar schedule.
The series also moved the date of next year's race at Kentucky from early August to Labor Day weekend. The move will give promoters a difficult task: trying to convince fans to come out to the race on the same weekend as the opening of the college football season.
Next year's race runs up against the annual showdown between Kentucky and Louisville. There's also competition from the Riverfest celebration in Cincinnati, an event that draws hundreds of thousands of people annually.
``I know there's a lot of competition, a lot of things to do, but there's also a lot of people with a lot of time,'' said track president Mark Simendinger. ``If you think you're going to drop in on Labor Day and not have anybody else doing anything, you're wrong. But it's a very big market we draw from.''
The race has been met with steady - if unspectacular - crowds during its 10-year run in Kentucky. The series has averaged about 55,000 fans at track, a little under the 65,000-seat capacity.
