Friday, October 24, 2008
Nikon Indy 300 – Streets of Surfer’s Paradise, Queensland, Australia
Round 18 of 18 in the IndyCar Series

HOLE IN THE WALL CAMPS DRIVER RAHAL AND McDONALD’S DRIVER WILSON 5TH AND 6TH RESPECTIVELY IN PRACTICE FOR THE NIKON INDY 300 IN AUSTRALIA

FASTEST: Will Power 1:34.8084 / 106.130 mph
5th: Graham Rahal 1:36.4963 / 104.273 mph
6th: Justin Wilson 1:36.5127 / 104.256 mph



Justin Wilson, No. 02 McDonald’s Dallara/Honda/Firestone: “This morning went a little smoother than this afternoon for the McDonald’s team. On old tires we were very quick but this afternoon wasn’t as good and we lost a little bit of performance but I’m confident we can come back tomorrow and fight for pole. We went back on some things we changed and got the performance back but never got to complete a lap after that because there were so many yellows. I was on a pretty good lap that the engineers figured would put me around second fastest but the yellow came out. We’ll see what we can do tomorrow but I’m confident we’ll be up there trying to get pole. I think the experience of having come here before in a Champ Car counted for a lot as well as the knowledge we gained in the Indy car at the other street races this year. I think the experience we gained this year played into it more than anything else. We’re learning all the time. We’re still developing the car and still haven’t tested this car on a road or street circuit yet so we’re still out there in pit lane changing big things because its our chance to learn what the car can do. Its just part of the process of coming over to a new series. You make two steps forward and one step back and try to work out what’s good and what’s bad.”

FAST FACTS: Will be his fourth race here (in five attempts) and only fourth time this season to race on a track he has previous experience on. The last two times he has come to Surfer’s, he was a contender for the title but doesn’t have that pressure this year since this is an exhibition race. He finished second to eventual champion Bourdais here last year after he started fifth. In 2006 he did not compete here after he broke the scaphoid bone in his right wrist in Friday’s pre-qualifying warm-up while third in the point standings, with an outside shot at the title. He started and finished seventh in 2005 and started seventh and finished eighth in 2004…His highest start on a road/street course this season is pole in the Long Beach Champ Car finale. On road/street course in the IndyCar series, he has started 3rd (St. Pete), 2nd (Watkins Glen), 4th (Mid-Ohio), 6th (Edmonton; brushed wall in Q2), 7th (Sonoma) and fourth (Detroit) and his highest finish is 3rd in Edmonton…Finished runner up in the Champ Car championship to the driver he recently replaced, four-time champion Sebastien Bourdais, in 2006 and 2007. Was a title contender until the conclusion of the penultimate race of each season…Highest start this season is pole on the streets of Long Beach and his highest finish is third on the street course in Edmonton.



Graham Rahal, No. 06 Hole in the Wall Camps Dallara/Honda/Firestone: “I think there is a little more in the car but overall the day went as well as I could have imagined it going. Of course it would be nice to be first but it kind of seems like (Will) Power is in a league of his own right now but I think that we are definitely pretty close. Our car is pretty good and with a little bit of fine tuning it should get us to where we need to be to challenge for the pole and everything else. It’s definitely not far off and the nice thing is knowing that we are so close. Before the last session we were sitting in the trailer comparing Indy car data with Champ Car data just to look at racing lines. It is different driving here in the Indy car. It feels different and a little harder over the curbing. We made a lot of strides today just making it better over the curbing and that’s what we needed.”

FAST FACTS: Will be his second race here and only fourth on a track he raced on prior to this year. In 2007, he started 9th, set the fastest lap of the race but finished 11th after being hit by Nelson Philippe on Lap 26 of 61 while 5th…In his IndyCar Series debut on a road/street course he became the youngest winner in major open-wheel racing in North America after winning in St. Pete on 4-6-08 at 19 years, 93 days old.



NHLR IN AUSTRALIA: In the previous 17 years of racing here, NHR/NHLR has earned SIX WINS (Sebastien Bourdais 2005 & 2007, Junqueira 2004, Da Matta 2001, Tracy 1995, Mansell 1993), SEVEN POLES (Servia 2005, Bourdais 2003, Da Matta 2002, Mi. Andretti 1995 & 1991, Mansell 1993-1994) and 10 PODIUM finishes (2nd – Bourdais 2004; 3rd - Fittipaldi 1998, Mi. Andretti 1997, Ma. Andretti 1994). Of their 107 wins, 80 have come on road/street courses while 89 of their 107 poles have also come on this type of track.