Bus and taxi drivers...
Bus and taxi drivers are usually blameless if they"re involved in an accident, psychologists claim. Interviews and simulator tests with thousands of motorists showed professionals driving public transport and emergency vehicles are least likely to have caused a crash. "They are often victims of another"s error," said Nottingham University scientists.
Lewis Hamilton isn’t...
Lewis Hamilton isn’t the only Brit to be leading a major motorsport series at the moment. But while the level-headed McLaren star is confounding all expectations in Formula One, the impressive form of Dan Wheldon on the other side of the Atlantic has come as no surprise.
Despite missing out in qualifying, Wheldon believes he has found a great chassis set-up for when it really counts on Sunday
Wheldon is already well proven in the IndyCar championship, having taken the title in 2005. This season, he’s been in dominant form, winning two out of four rounds so far and leading for 482 of the 600 laps staged on ovals. So as the IRL circus arrives in Indiana for its flagship event on Sunday – the Indy 500 – he’s the red-hot favourite.
The Englishman has only qualified sixth for this year’s race, but that’s not a massive concern in a 500-mile event. “Qualifying is not the be all and end all,” explained the 28-year-old from Emberton, Bucks.
“For some reason we didn’t get the most out of the car, but then that’s Indianapolis for you. It’s always a challenge; this is the great thing about it. If it was easy, it wouldn’t be the Indy 500. You’ve got to remember, winning the race is always the bigger picture. That’s what keeps me so enamoured with this special event.
“You’d think that after winning it once when you’ve worked so hard to achieve such an amazing victory, you would be satisfied. But as far as I’m concerned, it just makes you even more determined to win again.”
Despite missing out in qualifying, Wheldon believes he has found a great chassis set-up for when it really counts on Sunday. “Our car seems to be very quick,” he explained.
“Even with a comfortable level of downforce it still turns in good lap times, and that’s exactly what you need for a race at Indy. The more downforce you can get away with running and the more comfortable you feel in the car, the better.”
“I’ve seen the great side of Indianapolis with my victory in 2005. But then I’ve also seen that side where, like last year, it just wrenched my heart from my body.
“To be so comfortable in traffic and be so at home in a race car, then to pick up a flat tyre late in the race when you can’t make up the time, was tough. It was incredibly disappointing – but it makes me very motivated to come back and try to win again.”
For a long time during qualifying, it was another Brit – Dario Franchitti – who topped the time sheets. But the Scot was eventually pipped by Team Penske star Helio Castroneves and Franchitti’s own Andretti-Green Racing team-mate, Tony Kanaan. “A pole at Indy would have been tremendous, but I knew that anywhere in the top few rows would have given me a great chance,” Dario said.
“I’m happy with third place on the front row of the grid if I can then try to win the race, and this year we do seem to be in the hunt.”
But the man both Brits will have to look out for is last year’s winner, and acknowledged oval specialist, Sam Hornish. He lines up between the pair in fifth slot. The American, who also stole Wheldon’s crown last year, revealed: “Nothing really matters until race day. The big thing is how we make it to the last 20 laps of the race and get involved in the shoot-out for the win. We simply approach it the same as we did last year, and ensure we can reach the end of the race.”
You can see if Dan and Dario can pull off the big one on Sky Sports 3 at 4.30pm on Sunday.