CASTRONEVES AND TEAM PENSKE OVERCOME ADVERSITY FOR BREAKTHROUGH WIN

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Helio Castroneves has overcome adversity to snap the longest winless streak of his career and move closer to his first IndyCar Series championship by taking victory at Infineon Raceway in California, USA, today.

Castroneves and his Aussie team-mate Ryan Briscoe took a 1-2 finish at=the PEAK Antifreeze & Motor Oil Indy Grand Prix of Sonoma County despite the fact they were aboard back-up cars after their primary racers were destroyed in a transporter fire on-route to the track earlier in the week.

The win for Castroneves, who hadn't won since April 2007 ˜ a span =f 30 races, saw the Brazilian take victory in a record-setting eighth consecutive season.

The 13th win of his IndyCar Series career also allowed Castroneves to =have 35 points from his deficit in the championship standings. He trails Scott Dixon, who finished 12th, by 43 points with two races remaining.

Castroneves led 51 of 80 laps after starting from the pole and beat Br=scoe to the finish line by 5.2926 seconds.

Andretti Green Racing's Tony Kanaan finished third, Target Chip Gana=si Racing's Dan Wheldon was fourth and AGR's Danica Patrick was fifth.

Queensland's Will Power and his #8 Aussie Vineyards ˜ Team Austral=a Honda/Dallara/Firestone saw his Sonoma debut turn sour after qualifying third ˜ falling victim to a problem with his brakes which caused him to shortcut the track several times and as such attract a drive through penalty dropping him to 21st place.

The 2008 IndyCar Series season continues with the Detroit Indy Grand P=ix presented by Firestone Aug. 31 at The Raceway at Belle Isle Park as the unified series continues on a schedule that is the most diverse in world motorsports.

The 2008 schedule will take the teams and drivers to short ovals, supe=speedways, and road and street courses including the Nikon Indy 300 which is regarded as a ‏crown jewel' in international motorsport.

With 96 hours of non-stop excitement over October 23-26 as the Gold Co=st comes alive to the sound of the IndyCars burning up the track and Australia's own V8 Supercars scorching around one of the most famous beach-side cities in the world, the event is the hottest ticket in town.

Tickets are now on sale for the Nikon Indy 300 with ticket options to =uit everyone's needs. Four day Grandstand passes are available for those who prefer to watch the racing from the comfort of their own reserved seat or for those who prefer to wander around and soak up the atmosphere then a four day, weekend or single day General Admission pass might be more their style. For more information on ticket options go to indy.com.au. For information on Corporate Hospitality packages please call the Nikon Indy 300 Sales Team on (07) 5588 6800.

WHAT THEY HAD TO SAY…
Helio Castroneves - #3 Team Penske Racing (finshed first):
‘People kept telling me that the door (to victory lane) would finall= open, and today we broke through it,’ said Castroneves.

‘The door was really stuck, but what an incredible effort by Team Pe=ske. I can't thank them enough. I'm really excited about today, because the car was extremely fast. For me, it was really fun pushing and pushing every lap for the entire race.

‘That's what it's all about, and that's what made us win. We=didn't save any fuel. We just kept going and going, and it paid off in the end.

(Did this work out just as you planned it?): ‘We didn't plan it =ike that, but with the traffic, we changed the plans lap by lap and we pitted when we thought we were going to slow down. We never let our guard down. We just kept pushing and we came away with a win.

‘(What at does the win mean for morale?): ‘The attitude of those=guys is priceless. Everyone has been working so hard since last Wednesday. Taking cars to Charlotte and bringing cars back from Charlotte, converting cars from oval to road course.
‘You're talking about two days work in 12 hours. When you see gu=s doing that, you just want to do your best. Not that we don't always give our best, but you want to make it a special day, and today it was.’

Ryan Briscoe - #6 Team Penske Racing (finished second):
‘It's unbelievable. To start the week off the way we did, with t=e fire and everything, and then dominate with a one-two qualifying and race result, it's definitely the strongest we've been all year," said Briscoe.

"I'm so happy for Helio (Castroneves). Not getting a win all year =nd getting all of those seconds was killing him. So I'm really happy for him to win the race. He was the quickest car out there today. It's just great for the team. Big congrats to Team Penske.’

Scott Dixon - #9 Target Chip Ganassi Racing (Series leader, finis=ed 12th):
‘I'm not upset with anybody in particular, we just did absolutely n=thing right,’ said Dixon.

‘I don't know why we stayed out when the car in front of us is three=seconds slower and we couldn't make up any track position. Everything we did was wrong.

(About points race): "We still lost a ton of points. This is a race =hat's very tough, unfortunately, we got the bad end of the stick. Hopefully, we'll turn it around next time."

(43 points still is a good lead with two races left): "When you lose 3=-whatever today, it makes it a lot easier to come back.

(Is this the low point for you): "It was definitely a bad day. I gue=s we just need to shrug it off and come back strong next week.’

Will Power - #8 Aussie Vineyards ˜ Team Australia:
‘My rear master cylinder failed early in the race and that pretty mu=h ended any chance we had of competing for a podium finish,’ said Power.

‘It's a real shame, the KVRT Aussie Vineyards ˜ Team Australia w=rked so hard and we had a really good car in qualifying and early in the race.’

RESULTS: PEAK Antifreeze & Motor Oil Indy Grand Prix of Sonoma Co=nty
Results of the PEAK Antifreeze & Motor Oil Indy Grand Prix of Sonoma C=unty IndyCar Series event Aug. 24 at the 2.303-mile Infineon Raceway, with order of finish, starting position in parentheses, driver, chassis-engine, laps completed and reason out (if any):
1. (1) Helio Castroneves, Dallara-Honda, 80, Running
2. (2) Ryan Briscoe, Dallara-Honda, 80, Running
3. (4) Tony Kanaan, Dallara-Honda, 80, Running
4. (16) Dan Wheldon, Dallara-Honda, 80, Running
5. (9) Danica Patrick, Dallara-Honda, 80, Running
6. (14) E.J. Viso, Dallara-Honda, 80, Running
7. (18) Vitor Meira, Dallara-Honda, 80, Running
8. (15) Graham Rahal, Dallara-Honda, 80, Running
9. (7) Justin Wilson, Dallara-Honda, 80, Running
10. (12) Mario Moraes, Dallara-Honda, 80, Running
11. (22) Buddy Rice, Dallara-Honda, 80, Running
12. (5) Scott Dixon, Dallara-Honda, 80, Running
13. (20) Hideki Mutoh, Dallara-Honda, 80, Running
14. (10) Marco Andretti, Dallara-Honda, 80, Running
15. (6) Oriol Servia, Dallara-Honda, 80, Running
16. (11) Mario Dominguez, Dallara-Honda, 80, Running
17. (13) Bruno Junqueira, Dallara-Honda, 80, Running
18. (8) Ryan Hunter-Reay, Dallara-Honda, 80, Running
19. (19) Townsend Bell, Dallara-Honda, 79, Running
20. (24) A.J. Foyt IV, Dallara-Honda, 79, Running
21. (27) Enrique Bernoldi, Dallara-Honda, 79, Running
22. (21) Darren Manning, Dallara-Honda, 79, Running
23. (23) Ed Carpenter, Dallara-Honda, 78, Off Course
24. (26) Jaime Camara, Dallara-Honda, 78, Running
25. (3) Will Power, Dallara-Honda, 77, Off Course
26. (25) Marty Roth, Dallara-Honda, 76, Running
27. (17) Tomas Scheckter, Dallara-Honda, 56, Mechanical

RACE STATISTICS:
- Winner's average speed: 100.254 mph
- Time of race: 1:50:15.8282
- Margin of victory: 5.2926 seconds
- Cautions: 1 caution flags for 2 laps
- Lead changes: 8 among 4 drivers
- Lap leaders: Castroneves 1-16, Briscoe 17-27, Viso 28-35, Castroneve= 36-44, Briscoe 45-52, Kanaan 53, Castroneves 54-57, Viso 58, Castroneves 59-80
- Point standings: Dixon 576, Castroneves 533, Wheldon 452, Kanaan 446= Briscoe 390, Patrick 345, Andretti 327, Mutoh 315, Servia 313, Hunter-Reay 310.

INDYCAR SERIES POINTS STANDINGS ˜ POST RACE 15 ˜ TOP TEN
1 - Scott Dixon - 576 points
2 - Helio Castroneves - 533
3 - Dan Wheldon - 452
4 - Tony Kanaan - 446
5 - Ryan Briscoe - 390
6 - Danica Patrick - 345
7 - Marco Andretti - 327
8 - Hideki Mutoh - 315
9 - Oriol Servia - 313
10 - Ryan Hunter-Reay - 310
15 - Will Power - 277

BOMBARDIER ROOKIE OF THE YEAR POINTS STANDINGS ˜ POST RACE 15 <=b>
1 - Hideki Mutoh - 315 points
2 - Will Power - 277
3 - Justin Wilson - 271
4 - E.J. Viso - 262
5 - Graham Rahal - 259
6 - Enrique Bernoldi - 220
7 - Mario Moraes - 217
8 - Jaime Camara - 152
9 - Mario Dominguez - 112