
He currently races full-time in Ind圜ar and has also won an IMSA title.
#Helio castroneves full
Incidentally, Kanaan is also in talks about dabbling in the stock car series.Ĭastroneves contested the full 2021 SRX schedule and finished fifth in points with a podium. Needless to say, the ball is now in Hawk’s court ( PROJECT91, anyone?). The one-off start came with a caveat from SRX CEO Don Hawk, who offered him a chance to début in the Cup Series-particularly at nearby Daytona International Speedway-if he won.
#Helio castroneves series
Nevertheless, he flew to Florida with the hope that a spare car would be available and his speculation proved accurate as the series carries at least three backup vehicles.

While a perennial fan favourite who scaled the catchfence as he always did for his Ind圜ar triumphs, Castroneves was not originally entered in the race. The third-place finish makes Newman the points leader going into next Saturday’s South Boston Speedway round ahead of seven other full-time drivers. Former NASCAR Cup Series driver Ryan Newman joined Pollard and Castroneves on the podium. The four-time Indianapolis 500 winner knew it wouldnt last. He got the ball rolling in Heat #2 by leading every lap.Ī late restart saw Heat #1 winner Bubba Pollard, a short track star representing the Pensacola oval as its local champion, quickly climb through the order to take second. Helio Castroneves walked into an empty, mostly quiet Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Friday morning. In fact, even the track they were racing on is more known for its stock cars than anything else.Ĭastroneves and Kanaan fought for the win for much of the 2022 Superstar Racing Experience season opener at Five Flags Speedway, and the four-time Indianapolis 500 winner Castroneves trumped the once victor for his first win in the series. In Victory Lane, Castroneves revealed a bet he made with SRX CEO Don Hawk: If Castroneves won the race, Hawk would have to give Castroneves the funding to run a NASCAR race at Daytona for the first time in his career.Hélio Castroneves battling Tony Kanaan is a headline that NTT Ind圜ar Series fans are accustomed to, except Saturday night’s race was not in open-wheel cars. In a way, I understand why the idea of making his NASCAR. His haul of 3,048,005 in 2009 is also a record. I’d rather see Helio Castroneves make his NASCAR debut at a mile-and-a-half track or somewhere he is familiar with, like Pocono Raceway. There was a great deal riding on Saturday night's race for Castroneves. Helio Castroneves has won the most money in Indy 500 history Castroneves career earnings are a record 14,985,749. Pollard's advance stalled at second, as he had to muscle the difficult-to-pass Ryan Newman out of the way on the final lap to take that spot. But his chance at winning was severely compromised when he cut down a left rear tire, forcing him to come to pit road under caution and then come all the way back from the rear of the field. Pollard's primary challengers came from the Ind圜ar ranks, as Castroneves, Kanaan and Paul Tracy led much of the night between the opening two Heat races and the 75-lap main event.Įven in extreme heat - temperatures were in the high 90s before sundown, so intense that they actually cooked the pace car before the main event - Pollard looked like one cool customer. The surprise, though, was who ended up challenging him for the win throughout the night.
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To no one's surprise, former Snowball Derby winner and four-time Five Flags Speedway track champion Bubba Pollard quickly established himself as the driver to beat. It turned out a car was available, and it ended up being quickly prepared for Castroneves to eventually take to the winner's circle. ET last night, when he texted SRX's Don Hawk to see if there was a car available for him to drive. After clearing Kanaan for the lead, Castroneves built a comfortable lead for himself to cruise to victory as Pollard and Ryan Newman put on a spirited battle for second in the final laps.Īccording to Matt Weaver of Racing America, Castroneves' path to victory began at 10:34 p.m.


Then, Castroneves changed his plans - and based on the trophy he now has, it's a good thing he did.Īfter being a late entry for the SRX season opener, Castroneves outdueled fellow Brazilian Tony Kanaan and short track ace Bubba Pollard to take the checkered flag and win at Five Flags Speedway. A little over 24 hours ago, Helio Castroneves hadn't been planning to compete in the season opener for the Camping World SRX Series.
