Delphi Indy 300
www.chicagolandspeedway.com
HOME
Fisher crashed at Nazareth but will be racing at Chicagoland.
Photo Credit: ESPN.com (ap)
NOTEBOOK
Diary: Check out the latest diary from Sarah regarding her long weekend in Nazareth and her recovery the past 2 weeks here
AOL for Broadband: Check out Sarah's latest piece from the Chicago race which should be posted mid-week at AOL keyword: Sarah Fisher
On the Mend: IndyCar Series driver Sarah Fisher, who suffered a severe back contusion during an accident at Nazareth Speedway Aug. 23 during final practice, has been cleared to drive by Dr. Henry Bock, medical services director for the Indy Racing League.
Fisher will return to the cockpit of the No. 23 GMAC/AOL/Dreyer & Reinbold Racing Dallara/Chevrolet/Firestone this weekend at the Delphi Indy 300 at Chicagoland Speedway.
*indyracing.com
Sarah struggled early with her car, a victim of push problems. Fisher’s race began from the 15th position, and she finished 18th overall.
“We started out just like a carbon copy of Kentucky,” said Fisher’s engineer Mike O’Gara. “By ourselves, the car was great, but we had too much push at the beginning in traffic. We made a couple of tire pressure changes during our stops, then wing changes and the car was good the rest of the race.”
“We thought we had a good setup on the car going into the race, and expected some drafting and traffic strategy to pull us through,” said Fisher. “Regardless of the outcome, I appreciate all the get well thoughts from fans and peers alike – my pain back is non-existent and I’m feeling really good about my recovery from the Nazareth mishap.”
Sarah suffered a serious back contusion following an accident during the final practice session prior to the Nazareth race. Held overnight in the hospital for observation, she missed the race but was eventually cleared to drive last week by the IRL medical director, Dr. Henry Bock.
The IRL’s 15th race of the season, the Toyota Indy 400, will be run at the California Speedway on September 21, and will be carried live on ABC.
During the morning practice session, Sarah was running in the 18th position with speeds of 219.841. The car has a good set-up and is ready to go for the race.
Sarah qualified with a speed of 219.871. She was the 5th driver to qualify. She will start the race in the 15th position.
“It’s great to be back in the car this weekend. I have no pain at this point, and the car setup and team communication is working better for us this weekend, so you can’t ask for more than that. Our speed is stacking up mid-stream of all the entries throughout practice so far, so we’ll depend more on the setup and ability to work through the traffic come race day. We’re focused on race set up and, because the draft is so important here, we expected to qualify a little slower than we’ve been running. Off the track it’s been a super weekend as well, with great media opportunities, care of our sponsor Raybestos, and a fun ‘meet and greet’ with local Girl Scouts earlier today. I’m just having fun this weekend with everything - that’s what it should be all about.” Said Sarah
Sarah was running towards the back of the field in the 18th position.
She reached speeds of 219.634. She was able to complete 23 laps.
This was the final practice before qualifications!
Qualifications start at 5:30 (EST)
During morning practice sessions, Sarah was running in the 12th position with speeds reaching 219.812. She completed 23 laps.
During afternoon practice sessions, Sarah was running in the 19th position with speeds reaching 220.152.
“This race in Chicago is holding us in a bit of suspense. We hit the wall in Nazareth, and after a bit of back soreness and some work on the car, we hope to have the opportunity to finally showcase the Gen IV on a deserving track. We also would like to re-establish ourselves as a contender here after a blown engine last year. The Chicago market also holds some great opportunities for us, as one of our main sponsors, Raybestos, resides here. It’s always great to spend time with the people whose resources and support make it possible for us to race.”