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Carpenter Starts 22nd In Sunday's Toronto Indy

Topics: Ed Carpenter, Honda Indy Toronto

Carpenter Starts 22nd In Sunday's Toronto Indy

Tom Blattler
Ed Carpenter Racing
July 7, 2012

Carpenter Starts 22nd In Sunday's Toronto Indy

July 7th 2012 - TORONTO – Ed Carpenter, coming off back-to-back top-ten finishes in the IZOD IndyCar Series, will start 22nd Sunday in the 85-lap main event through the Exhibition Place grounds in Toronto.

Carpenter drove his No. 20 Fuzzy’s Ultra Premium Vodka Chevrolet to a time of one minute, 1.033 seconds over the 1.755-mile, 11-turn temporary circuit which includes the picturesque Lake Shore Blvd. as well as the streets through the legendary Exhibition Place. Carpenter was a little disappointed following qualifying as he felt he could have recorded a quick time in the 10-minute opening qualifying round.

A morning rain storm greeted the racers Saturday morning after mid-90 degree conditions for Friday’s first practice runs. The 25-car field had to utilize the Firestone rain tires for over half of the one-hour practice before the track surface dried properly and the slick rubber was then used.

The rainy surface made for some wild action early in the practice before times returned to normal for the IndyCar Series competitors as they prepared for Saturday afternoon’s time trials. In the end, last year’s race winner, Dario Franchitti, scored the pole position for Sunday’s Toronto contest, set to begin at 1 p.m. EDT.

Carpenter and his Fuzzy’s Vodka crew hope to continue their record as one of only two teams to complete every race after the first nine events in 2012 when the greens drops at the popular Canadian street race.

“It was a weird day for everyone with the rain in the morning practice. We could have used a completely dry session this morning. We had to try some things in qualifying that I wish we worked on in the morning. I messed up a bit on my fastest lap or we could have been quicker. I think we could have picked up a few spots on the grid. I felt I could have done better in qualifying. Our best session was probably practice one on Friday. We were the closest to the leaders then. So it has been a little frustrating with our setups. But this is always a wild race. You never know what will happen on Sunday.”