SPEEDWAY, IN – MAY 29, 2011 – KV Racing Technology – SH Racing driver Tomas Scheckter had a superb race today, finishing eighth in the 100th Anniversary of the Indianapolis 500 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana.
Scheckter, 30, driving the No. 07 Team REDLINE Xtreme machine, started 21st and after 10 laps had gained six places. He showed patience during the race, moving back and forth through the field, but it was during the restarts where he really stood out. The first restart, Scheckter picked up seven spots (over six laps), putting him 13th and on the fifth restart (out of seven) managed an incredible eight places on the first lap putting him seventh. Shortly after that, another yellow was shown and Scheckter took advantage again, moving up another three positions putting him inside the top-five. As some of the leaders pitted, Scheckter moved into second, but with 12 laps to go, he needed to pit for a quick splash of fuel. He rejoined the contest in 13th and in the final eight laps, pushed through the field to finish eighth.
Commenting on the race today, Scheckter said, “You know you have a great car, when you don’t feel that tired at the end. We struggled with straight line speed, but I would love to see how many cars I passed on the restarts in total. It was a tough race, I had to fight from the beginning to the end. I really want to thank Team REDLINE Xtreme and KV-SH Racing for giving me a good consistent car today.”
Scheckter, was competing in his 10th Indy 500 today and also an IZOD IndyCar Series race for the 10th consecutive season. In nine previous occasions at the Brickyard, he has a best finish of fourth (his inaugural Indy 500, in 2002) and led the race on three separate occasions totaling 153 laps. Scheckter was named Indianapolis 500 co-Rookie of the Year in 2002.
“I am ecstatic with the effort from Team Redline Xtreme today. To finish 8th place in our first Indianapolis 500 is an achievement and I couldn’t be more proud of Scheckter and the crew”, said SH Principal James “Sulli” Sullivan.
CEO of VPX/Redline, Jack Owoc was overwhelmed with the experience and stated, “this was an experience of a lifetime. The folks at the IZOD IndyCar series understand marketing.”
Speaking about his first Indy 500 today, SH Racing’s Principal TJ Humphreys said “I am completely blown away with our result today. “The KV-SH Racing team and crew worked overtime to give us the best opportunity for a top-10 finish. I am extremely proud and thankful to the entire KV Racing Technology organization for their added effort to make this a successful first Indy 500. I couldn’t be more proud of Scheckter and his courageous ability to fight his way through the field.”
