2006 Toyota Indy 300
| Race details | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1st round of the 2006 IndyCar season
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Layout of the Homestead–Miami Speedway circuit | |||||
| Date | March 26, 2006 | ||||
| Official name | Toyota Indy 300 Presented by XM Satellite Radio | ||||
| Location | Homestead–Miami Speedway, Homestead, Florida | ||||
| Course | Permanent racing facility 1.5 mi / 2.4 km | ||||
| Distance | 200 laps 300 mi / 482.803 km | ||||
| Pole position | |||||
| Driver | Sam Hornish Jr. (Team Penske) | ||||
| Time | 24.463 | ||||
| Fastest lap | |||||
| Driver | Scott Dixon (Chip Ganassi Racing) | ||||
| Time | 24.7198 (on lap N/A of 200) | ||||
| Podium | |||||
| First | Dan Wheldon (Chip Ganassi Racing) | ||||
| Second | Hélio Castroneves (Team Penske) | ||||
| Third | Sam Hornish Jr. (Team Penske) | ||||
| Chronology | |||||
| |||||
The 2006 Toyota Indy 300 Presented by XM Satellite Radio was the first round of the 2006 IndyCar Series season. The race was held on March 26, 2006, in Homestead, Florida at Homestead–Miami Speedway. The race took the scheduled 200 laps to complete. Dan Wheldon won the race. Hélio Castroneves finished 2nd, and Sam Hornish Jr. finished 3rd.[1] Dario Franchitti and Scott Dixon rounded out the top five, and Kosuke Matsuura, Scott Sharp, Felipe Giaffone, Tomas Scheckter, and Eddie Cheever rounded out the top ten.
The race was marred by a violent crash in the final practice session, which claimed the life of rookie driver Paul Dana. Dana's teammates, Danica Patrick and Buddy Rice, withdrew from the race to honor his memory.[2] Ed Carpenter was also involved in the crash and suffered injuries, though he recovered.
Entry list
| Key | Meaning |
|---|---|
| R | Rookie |
| W | Past winner |
Practice
First practice
The first practice session was held on Friday, March 24, at 10:30 AM EST, and lasted for 60 minutes.[3]
| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Chassis | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 9 | Scott Dixon W | Target Chip Ganassi Racing | Dallara | 24.897 |
| 2 | 6 | Sam Hornish Jr. W | Marlboro Team Penske | Dallara | 24.897 |
| 3 | 11 | Tony Kanaan | Andretti Green Racing | Dallara | 24.932 |
| Official first practice results | |||||
Second practice
The second practice session was held on Friday, March 24, at 2:00 PM EST, and lasted for 90 minutes.[3]
Three minutes into the session, Vítor Meira crashed in turn 4, suffering heavy damage to the right side and rear of his car. Meira walked out unharmed.[3]
| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Chassis | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 10 | Dan Wheldon W | Target Chip Ganassi Racing | Dallara | 24.800 |
| 2 | 9 | Scott Dixon W | Target Chip Ganassi Racing | Dallara | 24.904 |
| 3 | 3 | Hélio Castroneves | Marlboro Team Penske | Dallara | 24.971 |
| Official second practice results | |||||
Third practice
The third practice session was held on Saturday, March 25, at 10:30 AM EST, and lasted for 60 minutes.[4]
| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Chassis | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 | Hélio Castroneves | Marlboro Team Penske | Dallara | 24.573 |
| 2 | 6 | Sam Hornish Jr. W | Marlboro Team Penske | Dallara | 24.585 |
| 3 | 9 | Scott Dixon W | Target Chip Ganassi Racing | Dallara | 24.726 |
| Official third practice results | |||||
Qualifying
Qualifying was held on Saturday, March 25, at 2:45 PM EST.[4] Each driver was required to run two laps in their qualifying attempt; the best of the two laps would determine their starting position.
Sam Hornish Jr., driving for Marlboro Team Penske, would score the pole for the race, with a lap of 24.4625, and a speed of 218.539 mph (351.704 km/h). Hornish's teammate, Hélio Castroneves, would start alongside him on the front row.[5]
Qualifying classification
- Notes
- Bold text indicates fastest time set in session.
Practice (post-qualifying)
Final practice - Death of Paul Dana
The fourth and final practice session was held on Sunday, March 26, at 10:00 AM EST, and lasted for 30 minutes.[7]
Three minutes into the session, Ed Carpenter spun in turn 2 and made heavy contact with the SAFER barrier.[7] As Carpenter's car slid down the track, the caution lights had turned on and several drivers immediately slowed down at the scene of the crash. Unfortunately, Paul Dana continued driving at an estimated speed of 175 mph (281.635 km/h)[8] and slammed head-on into the left-rear of Carpenter's car, causing Dana's car to lift high in the air before landing on all four tires.[9] Both drivers were assisted out of their cars and airlifted to Jackson Memorial Hospital, where Dana was pronounced dead shortly before noon (EST).[9] Carpenter remained in the hospital for further evaluation and was released the next day.[10] He was diagnosed with bruised lungs and sat out the next race at St. Petersburg.[11] Out of respect for Dana, Rahal Letterman Racing withdrew their other two entries, which were to be driven by Buddy Rice and Danica Patrick.[12] A memorial service for Dana was held in St. Petersburg, Florida on March 30, 2006, prior to the weekend's festivities for the IRL race at St. Petersburg.[11][13]
While IRL officials considered postponing or cancelling the race, they eventually decided to instead begin the race as scheduled after consulting with then-track president Curtis Gray.[12]
| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Chassis | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 20 | Ed Carpenter | Vision Racing | Dallara | 25.946 |
| 2 | 11 | Tony Kanaan | Andretti Green Racing | Dallara | 26.004 |
| 3 | 16 | Danica Patrick | Rahal Letterman Racing | Panoz | 26.242 |
| Official final practice results | |||||
Race
The race was held at 3:45 PM EST on March 26, 2006.[1]
Race classification
Championship standings after the race
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- Note: Only the top five positions are included.
Footnotes
- ^ a b c d During final practice, Paul Dana crashed into Ed Carpenter, which led to Dana's death. Vision Racing withdrew their #20 entry, and out of respect for Dana, Rahal Letterman Racing withdrew their three entries.[6]
References
- ^ a b "Toyota Indy 300 Daily Trackside Report -- March 26". IndyCar.com. March 26, 2006. Archived from the original on May 24, 2006. Retrieved July 10, 2025.
- ^ "Rookie Driver Paul Dana Dies After IndyCar Crash". Aftermarket News. March 27, 2006. Retrieved July 10, 2025.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ a b c "Toyota Indy 300 Daily Trackside Report -- March 24". IndyCar.com. March 24, 2006. Archived from the original on May 24, 2006. Retrieved July 10, 2025.
- ^ a b "Toyota Indy 300 Daily Trackside Report - March 25". IndyCar.com. March 25, 2006. Archived from the original on October 17, 2006. Retrieved July 10, 2025.
- ^ Lewandowski, Dave (March 25, 2006). "Hornish sets track record, shares front row with Castroneves". IndyCar.com. Archived from the original on October 22, 2006. Retrieved July 10, 2025.
- ^ "Quotes from Brian Barnhart and Bobby Rahal Press Conference". IndyCar.com. March 26, 2006. Archived from the original on October 17, 2006. Retrieved July 10, 2025.
- ^ a b "Toyota Indy 300 Daily Trackside Report -- March 26". IndyCar.com. March 26, 2006. Archived from the original on May 24, 2006. Retrieved July 10, 2025.
- ^ "PAUL DANA IRL CRASH AND REPORT 2006 MIAMI FLORIDA HOMESTEAD". YouTube.com. September 18, 2020. Retrieved July 10, 2025.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ a b Lewandowski, Dave (March 26, 2006). "Tragedy strikes". IndyCar.com. Archived from the original on April 8, 2006. Retrieved July 10, 2025.
- ^ Olson, Jeff (March 27, 2006). "Questions linger over Dana crash". Autosport. Retrieved July 10, 2025.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ a b "IRL Driver Carpenter Released from Hospital, Memorial for Paul Dana to Be Held March 30". Aftermarket News. March 29, 2006. Retrieved July 10, 2025.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ a b Olson, Jeff (March 26, 2006). "Drivers speak about Dana tragedy". Autosport. Retrieved July 10, 2025.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ Lewandowski, Dave (March 30, 2006). "A celebration of Dana's life". IndyCar.com. Archived from the original on May 24, 2006. Retrieved July 10, 2025.