Race Postponed To 10 A.m. March 29

[Mark H]

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – A weather system that moved across the Gulf of Mexicao and quickly dumped more than an inch of rain on the temporary street circuit and produced lightning forced postponement of the Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg to 10 a.m. (ET) March 29. The race will be televised by ESPN2.

 

The last time an IZOD IndyCar Series race was postponed to another day was kin September 2008 at Twin Ring Motegi in Japan (Danica Patrick won on the oval).

 

Will Power, who set a circuit record of 1 minute, 1.4816 seconds in the second round of qualifications on the 1.8-mile, 14-turn course, will start from the pole. He will be joined on the front row by Tony Kanaan in the No. 11 Team 7-Eleven car for Andretti Autosport. Power won the season opener on the temporary street course March 14 in Brazil.

 

Drivers participated in a 30-minute warm-up session on a dry racetrack in the morning, while the early afternoon Firestone Indy Lights race was impacted by rain (shortened from 45 to 35 laps). Participants and spectators had enjoyed spectacular weather the two previous days of on-track activity.

 

The IZOD IndyCar Series race was scheduled for a 3:45 p.m. green flag, with Indy Racing League, ABC, race promoters Green Savoree Promotions and city officials convening to decide the best course of action for the safety of spectators and race participants.

 

“I think it was a good decision to postpone the race for the safety of the fans and the teams," said Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing driver Hideki Mutoh, who will start 12th. "If we were to go out and try to race maybe there would only be one car that would finish. The fans deserve to see a good race so I hope the ones that were here are able to come back"