THE LINE - MAY 22, 2013

(Photo by Jim Haines/INDYCAR)
Ed Carpenter (No. 20 Ed Carpenter Racing Fuzzy's Ultra Premium Vodka Chevrolet), the lone team owner/driver in the IZOD IndyCar Series, recorded a blistering four-lap average speed of 228.762 mph (best lap of 229.347 mph; 39.2418 seconds) to win pole position for the 97th running of the Indianapolis 500 this coming Sunday, May 26th. Rookie Carlos Munoz (No. 26 Andretti Autosport Unistraw Chevrolet, right) qualified second at 228.342 mph, .2892 of a second off Carpenter's aggregate four-lap time.  Munoz, 21, earned $50,000 of the Verizon Front Row Awards and is seeking to match Juan Pablo Montoya as an Indianapolis 500 winner from Colombia. Montoya also started second - as a rookie - in his 2000 victory and was the last first-year front-row starter.  Marco Andretti (No. 25 Andretti Autosport RC Cola Chevrolet, left) was awarded a $40,000 bonus for qualifying third at 228.261 mph. It's Andretti's best start in eight attempts at the Speedway.

(Photo by Michael Roth/INDYCAR)
E.J. Viso (No. 5 Team Venezuela/Andretti Autosport/HVM Chevrolet) qualified fourth at 228.150 mph and has looked very racy all month.

(Photo by Walter Kuhn/INDYCAR)
AJ Allmendinger (No. 2 Team Penske IZOD Chevrolet) was fifth quick at 228.099 mph. Allmendinger has been very impressive and has proven to be an inspired choice by Roger Penske.

(Photo by Chris Jones/INDYCAR)
Will Power (No. 12 Team Penske Verizon Chevrolet) will start alongside teammate Allmendinger in Row 2. Power turned in a final four-lap average speed of 228.087 mph.

(Photo by Michael Roth/INDYCAR)
Reigning IZOD IndyCar Series champion Ryan Hunter-Reay (No. 1 Andretti Autosport DHL Chevrolet) turned a lap of 227.904 mph to put himself on the inside of Row 3.

(Photo by Shawn Gritzmacher/INDYCAR)
Three-time Indianapolis 500 winner Helio Castroneves  (No. 3 Team Penske Shell V-Power/Pennzoil Ultra Chevrolet) qualified eighth with a 227.762 mph average speed over his final four laps.

(Photo by Jim Haines/INDYCAR)
James Hinchcliffe (No. 27 Andretti Autosport GoDaddy Chevrolet) turned in a final four-lap average speed of 227.070 mph to take the last spot in Row 3. Other notables? Katherine Legge (No. 81 Angie's List Schmidt Peterson Pelfrey Honda) qualified last at 223.176 mph after her deal came together on May 18th. She held on to remain in the field as Michel Jourdain Jr. couldn't wring out enough speed out of his entry to bump her out of the field. Josef Newgarden (No. 21 Century 21 Honda for Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing) was the fastest second-day qualifier at 225.731 mph. Also qualifying were Graham Rahal (No. 15 Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Midas/Big O Tires Honda) who turned in a four-lap average speed of 225.007 mph; Sebastian Saavedra (No. 6 Dragon Racing Chevrolet), 224.929 mph; rookie Tristan Vautier (No. 55 Lucas Oil/Schmidt Peterson Motorsports Honda), 224.873 mph; Ana Beatriz (No. 18 Ipiranga Honda), 224.184 mph; Pippa Mann (No. 63 Dale Coyne Racing Honda), 224.005 mph; rookie Conor Daly (No. 41 ABC Supply Co./A.J. Foyt Racing Honda) 223.582 mph and Buddy Lazier (No. 91 Lazier Partners Chevrolet), 223.442 mph. Lazier, 45, put together his deal after not sitting in an Indy car for years. He did 40-something practice laps before qualifying and will make his 17th Indianapolis 500 start - the most in the field. The average speed of the field is 226.176 mph. There are four first-year Indy 500 competitors and four females in the field.

(Chevrolet)
Chevrolet has announced that San Francisco 49ers Coach Jim Harbaugh, who quarterbacked the Indianapolis Colts for part of the 1990s, will drive the 2014 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray Pace Car in the Indianapolis 500 on Sunday. A racing enthusiast, Harbaugh is also a principal at Panther Racing, which fields the two-car, Chevrolet-powered IndyCar team with drivers J.R. Hildebrand and Townsend Bell.

(Photo by Brian Lawdermilk for Chevrolet)
Jimmie Johnson (No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Lowe’s Patriotic Chevrolet SS) takes the checkered flag to win the Sprint All-Star race last Saturday night at the Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina. Editor-in-Chief's Note: The race was predictably boring and the allure of NASCAR's All-Star format has been clearly over for years, so much so that it has become nothing more than a tedious exercise filled with relentlessly overblown hype signifying nothing. What does it say about NASCAR's ability to deal with the serious issues threatening its very existence when they can't even muster the energy to fix their All-Star race? It's called vision, folks, and despite NASCAR's protests to the contrary, it's clearly in short supply down in Daytona Beach. - PMD

(Circuit of the Americas)
Australia's Jamie Whincup won three of the four Australian V8 Supercar races in the Austin 400 at Circuit of The Americas last weekend. New Zealander Fabian Coulthard won the other race, bringing to a close a highly successful first V8 Supercar event on US soil. Attendance for the three-day event, which was marked by record temperatures in the mid-90s, was 68,891, with approximately nine percent of fans who purchased tickets in advance of the race coming from Australia. Circuit of The Americas sold tickets to the event in more than 30 US states, including Texas. The event was the most successful international event ever staged for V8 Supercars outside of Australia and New Zealand.

(Circuit of the Americas)

(McLaren Automotive)
McLaren Automotive will produce a 50th anniversary edition of its of McLaren 12C supercar, in case your McLaren seems lacking somehow. Production of the McLaren 50 12C will be strictly limited to a maximum of 100 globally, split between just 50 examples of the 12C and 50 of the 12C Spider. Revisions include a remodelled, CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics)-optimized front bumper, which provides increased levels of front downforce and to create a more dynamic visual impact. The lower section of the color-coded bumper framing the air intakes is constructed from carbon fiber, while the front floor is made from carbon Kevlar. Above the bumper, a black McLaren F1-inspired heritage badge, previously only available to MSO clients, is also fitted on the bonnet. As standard, the McLaren 50 12C and 12C Spider models are fitted with the carbon ceramic brake upgrade, with 394x36mm discs at the front, and 380x34mm at the rear. These sit behind bespoke McLaren 50 Ultra Lightweight wheels finished in Satin Black. This unique design, 19-inch at the front and 20-inch at the rear, offers a combined 2kg saving over the optional Super Lightweight wheels. Inside the cabin, the McLaren 50 12C models are upholstered with a full leather upgrade, while subtle branding to the carbon fiber sill panel and floor mats is complimented by an anniversary dedication plate on the driver’s door which highlights the limited production run.
Available in Carbon Black, Supernova Silver or heritage McLaren Orange, other exterior aesthetic enhancements for the McLaren 50 12C include carbon fiber turning vanes featuring the McLaren 50 logo. Each of the McLaren 50 models will be presented with a monogrammed black and silver car cover, limited edition key, carbon fiber presentation key box (really?) and a specially commissioned print signed by McLaren Automotive Design Director, Frank Stephenson (wow). The retail price in the UK for the McLaren 50 12C is £196,000, and £215,500 for the McLaren 50 12C Spider.