INDYCAR (VARIOUS LOCATIONS) - SERIES NOTES I

1. Does Richmond hold key to IndyCar Series title?

2. Patrick among top female sports stars

3. Hornish Featured In July Maxim

1. Does Richmond hold key to IndyCar Series title?: If history holds true in 2007, there's a good chance the winner of this year's SunTrust Indy Challenge Presented by XM at Richmond International Raceway will drive away with the IndyCar Series championship. In the six previous events that the IndyCar Series has run at the .75-mile oval, the winner has claimed the series title three times, including 2006 IndyCar Series champion Sam Hornish Jr. Hornish Jr. claimed the checkered flag at Richmond International Raceway and won the series championship in 2002, while Scott Dixon repeated Hornish's feat in 2003. Additionally, 2001 winner Buddy Lazier and 2004 winner Dan Wheldon were the series runner-ups and 2005 winner Helio Castroneves finished sixth in points that year. The IndyCar Series made history by running at Richmond International Raceway's ¾-mile D-shaped oval beginning in 2001, making it the shortest track the series visits annually.

RICHMOND SUCCESS Successfully navigating through the IndyCar Series event at Richmond International Raceway can equal success in the season-long championship. Here's a look at the how the IndyCar Series champions fared at Richmond International Raceway during their championship runs since the track joined the schedule in 2001:

Year Series Champion Finish at Richmond 2001 Sam Hornish Jr. 2nd 2002 Sam Hornish Jr. 1st 2003 Scott Dixon 1st 2004 Tony Kanaan 5th 2005 Dan Wheldon 5th 2006 Sam Hornish Jr. 1st

2. Patrick among top female sports stars: For the second consecutive year, IndyCar Series driver Danica Patrick is ranked among America’s favorite female sports stars according toa national poll by Harris Interactive. Patrick, driver of the No. 7 Motorola Honda-powered Dallara, is ranked second behind tennis star Serena Williams in this year’s poll. She was ranked fifth in last year’s poll.

Harris Interactive Poll “Favorite Female Sports Star” 1. Serena Williams (Tennis) 2. Danica Patrick (IndyCar Series driver) 3. Venus Williams (Tennis) 4. Mia Hamm (Soccer) 5. Maria Sharapova (Tennis) 6. Annika Sorenstam (Golf) 7. Laila Ali (Boxing) 8. Michelle Wie (Golf) 9. Anna Kournikova (Tennis) 10. Michelle Kwan (Figure Skating)

3. Hornish Featured In July Maxim: Three-time Indianapolis 500 winner Sam Hornish Jr. is featured in the July issue of Maxim Magazine in the magazine’s “Celeb Rides” section. The article discusses Hornish’s love of cars as well as anecdotes about his hobby of restoring automobiles. The feature highlights his orange and white 1955 Chevrolet Del Ray in a photo shoot at his garage in his hometown of Defiance, Ohio. *** The 2007 IndyCar Series season continues with the SunTrust Indy Challenge on June 30 at Richmond International Raceway. The race will be telecast at 7:30 p.m. (ET) by ESPN and broadcast by the IMS Radio Network. The IMS Radio Network broadcast also is carried on XM Satellite Radio and www.indycar.com. The sixth season of Indy Pro Series competition continues with the Corning Twin 100s on July 7-8 at Watkins Glen International. The race will be telecast by ESPN2 at 5 p.m. (ET) on July 12. ESPN2’s coverage of the Iowa 100 will be telecast at 5:30 p.m. (ET) on July 3