Buddy Takes the Pole!

The engine maker (Honda) wasn't a surprise, but the team and driver (Rahal/Letterman and Rice) was a surprise. Honda has been strong all week, but it has been Andretti/Green and Fernandez with the top speeds so far.

Inside Row 1
Buddy Rice
Car# 15
G/H/F
Speed - 222.024
Team Rahal

Middle Row 1
Dan Wheldon
Car# 26
D/H/F
Speed - 221.524
Andretti Green Racing

Outside Row 1
Dario Franchitti
Car# 27
D/H/F
Speed - 221.471
Andretti Green Racing

2004 Indy 500 Starting Grid

3 drivers found the wall during their qualification attempts... First Brian Herta, then Felipe Giaffone and Alex Barron hit it with 30 minutes to go.

Gil DeFerran joined the ESPN broadcast team and did an excellent job as a driver analyst. Halfway through Buddy Rice's first lap, Gil predicted a pole run simply by watching the agressive line Buddy took through 1 and 2. ABC needs to get Gil in the booth for all their races immediately!