APRIL 25, 2003

Mario! (Part 3)

Mario Andretti has decided that returning to Indianapolis at the age of 63 is not such a good idea after all. The former World Champion made the decision after a spectacular 200mph somersault. Andretti will remain the oldest man ever to test an Indycar and his speed of 225.45mph is pretty impressive.

"What happened was maybe a signal that I should pay attention to," he told the Indianapolis TV station WTHR-TV. "I had an incredibly satisfying day and I'm very grateful to Michael and the Green team for giving me that opportunity."

The team is now planning to wait to see how Tony Kanaan's recovery goes before nominating a driver to qualify his car for him for the Indianapolis 500. Kanaan is recovering from a broken arm at the recent Indy Racing League race in Japan while his Andretti Green team mate Dario Franchitti is out of action with a fractured vertebrae following a motorcycle accident. Michael Andretti himself is due to retire from being a driver after the 500 and so at the moment the team has only stand-in Daniel Wheldon in action.