IndyCar
IRL: Fontana: Dan Wheldon preview
Dan Wheldon on the California Indy 400: "I think Fontana is a race that everybody is gunning to win. I love the track, I really do. The thing to me that makes California so good is it's very, very fast. It's one of the fastest ...
Edited: Mar 27, 2008, 5:47 AM
Copy link
Share on Viber
Dan Wheldon on the California Indy 400:
"I think Fontana is a race that everybody is gunning to win. I love the track, I really do. The thing to me that makes California so good is it's very, very fast. It's one of the fastest racetracks that we go to. It's a track that rewards a very fast race car, but it's also got to be good handling."
Dan Wheldon Facts
Wheldon clinched the 2005 IndyCar Series championship at Watkins Glen on Sept. 25. He is the first driver in IndyCar Series history to win the Indianapolis 500 and the championship in the same season.
Wheldon's best finish at California was third in 2004. With an 11th-place finish or better at California, he will record the most points in a single season in IndyCar Series history.
Wheldon's win at Chicagoland gave him six wins in 2005, setting an IndyCar Series record for the most victories in a season.
Wheldon has nine career IndyCar Series wins, tying him with Scott Sharp for the second-most wins in history. Sharp has nine wins in 114 starts, Wheldon has nine victories in 48 career starts.
Wheldon's nine wins came over a 29-race stretch; the best streak in IndyCar Series history.
The Klein Tools/Jim Beam team has recorded a top-six finish in 21 of the last 23 races.
Wheldon's six wins of 2005 have come at: Homestead-Miami (March 6), St. Petersburg (April 3), Twin Ring Motegi (April 30), Indianapolis (May 29), Pikes Peak (Aug. 21), Chicagoland (Sept. 11).
Including 2005, the driver who has won the season-opening race has gone on to win the championship in four of the last five IndyCar Series seasons. The lone exception was Tony Kanaan (2004).
Wheldon has led 14 races in 2005, tied for the most races led in a season in IndyCar Series history.
Wheldon has led more laps (745) in 2005 than any other driver. He is sixth on the all-time list for laps led with 1,211, and is one of only 10 people to lead at least 1,000 laps in the IndyCar Series.
Wheldon ranks in the top 10 in several IndyCar Series career categories. Those include: wins (t-2nd), top-five finishes (5th), races led (t-5th), top-10 finishes (6th), laps led (6th), career earnings (8th).
John Anderson, Team Manager, #26 Klein Tools/Jim Beam Dallara/Honda/Firestone on the California Indy 400:
"I want to see another win on the board for the Klein Tools/Jim Beam team and I know Dan will be out there going for it. It's a high-profile race and a win would give us momentum heading into next season."
-agr-
We want your opinion!
What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?
Take our 5 minute survey.
- The Motorsport.com Team
Read and post comments
Read also :
Share Or Save This Story
Copy link
Share on Viber
Previous article CHAMPCAR/CART: 2007 chassis and engine package announced
Next article CHAMPCAR/CART: Panoz to supply chassis in 2007
Top Comments
There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?
View More & Comment
More from
Tony Kanaan
Arrow McLaren signs multi-year engine extension with Chevrolet
IndyCar
IndyCar
Arrow McLaren signs multi-year engine extension with Chevrolet
IndyCar retains Independent Officiating Board leadership and managing director Scot Elkins for 2027
IndyCar
IndyCar
IndyCar retains Independent Officiating Board leadership and managing director Scot Elkins for 2027
Arrow McLaren appoints Ryan Hunter-Reay as new Sporting Director
IndyCar
IndyCar
Madison
Arrow McLaren appoints Ryan Hunter-Reay as new Sporting Director
Latest news
Yamaha boycotts Qatar Grand Prix amid ongoing Middle East war
MotoGP
MGP MotoGP
Malaysian GP
10 min
Yamaha boycotts Qatar Grand Prix amid ongoing Middle East war
F1 2026 qualifying head-to-head: Mexico GP
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
Mexican GP
13 min
F1 2026 qualifying head-to-head: Mexico GP
Red Bull drivers fear Mexico start, Max Verstappen jokes: “A Le Mans start would be just as quick”
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
Mexican GP
17 min
Red Bull drivers fear Mexico start, Max Verstappen jokes: “A Le Mans start would be just as quick”
Alex Marquez skips controversial Qatar GP to undergo surgery
MotoGP
MGP MotoGP
Malaysian GP
41 min
Alex Marquez skips controversial Qatar GP to undergo surgery
Feature
Discover prime content
How Spanish engineering and Alex Palou brought IndyCar to Barcelona
Feature
IndyCar
Feature
IndyCar
By Joey Barnes
How Spanish engineering and Alex Palou brought IndyCar to Barcelona
Inside AJ Foyt Racing’s transition: Hauger’s arrival, Ferrucci’s future, and the Pierson waiting game
Feature
IndyCar
Feature
IndyCar
By Joey Barnes
Inside AJ Foyt Racing’s transition: Hauger’s arrival, Ferrucci’s future, and the Pierson waiting game
You Ask The Questions: David Malukas
IndyCar
By Joey Barnes
You Ask The Questions: David Malukas
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.
Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here
Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page
Manage Alerts
Subscribe