The starting line-up for the 92nd running of the Indianapolis 500 – a major stop on the IndyCar Series calendar of which Australia’s own Gold Coast Indy 300 is a part - is now set with day three of qualifying and Bump Day held over the weekend.

With positions 1-11 set on May 10 - seeing Brisbane-born Kiwi Scott Dixon and Sydney’s Ryan Briscoe securing front row spots (1st and 3rd respectively) - positions 12-33 were up for grabs.

Briscoe's result is his best in three attempts to qualify for the Indy 500, with his previous highest starting position for the Indianapolis Motor Speedway event set last year, from where he went on to finish fifth.

The third day of qualifying saw twenty-two drivers qualify, including Queensland’s Will Power who will start 23rd for his Indianapolis 500 debut.

Power's result came after the Aussie Vineyards crew worked into the night to repair his car after a heavy crash with the Turn One SAFER Barrier in Friday's final practice. The event will also be the 27 year old's first superspeedway oval experience and only his fourth trip to an oval.

With positions 12-33 filled on the grid following Saturday's third day of qualifying, Bump Day was set up to see three drivers, Mario Dominguez, A.J. Foyt IV and Max Papis attempting their way into the field.

In the end, Marty Roth breathed the biggest sigh of relief after sitting on ‘the bubble’ for the final eight minutes as Roger Yasukawa, a five-time starter in the Indianapolis 500, made an unsuccessful qualifying attempt – his second of the day, and 2002 Gold Coast Indy 300 winner Mario Dominguez crashed after completing the first of four necessary laps at the same time the gun sounded to end the session.

In the end, Roth held the 33rd spot in the starting lineup while Foyt was 31st and Buddy Lazier 32nd.

Lazier earned a $50,000 bonus from Firestone for being the final driver to qualify for the 500-Mile Race.

Drivers have one final opportunity to practice on May 23 before the month of May festivities culminate with the 92nd running of the Indianapolis 500 on May 25 (USET). The event is a major stop in the 2008 IndyCar Series calendar - a schedule that is the most diverse in world motorsports.

The 2008 schedule will take the teams and drivers to short ovals, superspeedways, and road and street courses including the Gold Coast Indy 300 which is regarded as a ‘crown jewel’ in international motorsport.

The future of the Gold Coast Indy 300 was recently secured for at least another six years with a deal being reached with the new-look IndyCar Series and V8 Supercars Australia.

Now regarded as one of the world’s iconic motorsport events, the Gold Coast Indy 300 will now continue until and including 2013 with major plans already underway for a massive 20th anniversary celebration in 2010.

With 96 hours of non-stop excitement over October 23-26 as the Gold Coast comes alive to the sound of the IndyCars burning up the track and Australia’s own V8 Supercars scorching around one of the most famous beach-side cities in the world, the event is the hottest ticket in town.

Tickets are now on sale for the Gold Coast Indy 300 with ticket options to suit everyone's needs. Four day Grandstand passes are available for those who prefer to watch the racing from the comfort of their own reserved seat or for those who prefer to wander around and soak up the atmosphere then a four day, weekend or single day General Admission pass might be more their style. For more information on ticket options go to www.indy.com.au. For information on Corporate Hospitality packages please call our Sales Team on (07) 5588 6800.

WHAT THEY HAD TO SAY…
Will Power – Aussie Vineyards – #8 Team Australia Honda/Dallara/Firestone
“Indianapolis Motor Speedway is so unpredictable and (Saturday) it was really inconsistent, so I had to be very careful,” said Power after the third day of qualifying.

“Our Aussie Vineyards team just wanted to do a qualifying run, keep it off the wall, and get into the show, so I am a little relieved to have this behind us.

“We ran conservative, with more downforce to make sure we got through the run and give me some more confidence after (Friday's) incident, but I had understeer in turn two, was loose in turn three and had to back-off during the run.

“I’m really proud of the crew. They worked all night. I can’t thank them enough to actually have the car out there for practice.

“The last lap there, I started pushing in (Turn) 2 toward the wall; turned into (Turn) 3 and suddenly have a massive moment. You’ve got to run the car conservatively. That’s what we were doing (Saturday), we were going out there just to get in.”

Marty Roth - #25 Roth Racing Honda/Dallara/Firestone
“My guys did a great job putting the car out. They’ve been working hard. They haven’t slept in the last two days,” said Roth.

“We wheeled out a car that’s pretty solid. The changes we made made a lot of sense. The car has been consistent. Right now our focus is trying to get out in traffic, put some downforce on it and make it a race car. Hopefully we can get away from the qualifying side of this month."

INDY 500 AT INDIANAPOLIS SPEEDWAY STARTING LINE-UP
Starting Line-up/Qualifying Results for the 92nd Indianapolis 500 IndyCar Series event on the 2.5-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway, with starting position, car number in parentheses, driver, chassis-engine and speed (mph):

1. (9) Scott Dixon, Dallara-Honda, 226.366
2. (10) Dan Wheldon, Dallara-Honda, 226.110
3. (6) Ryan Briscoe, Dallara-Honda, 226.080
4. (3) Helio Castroneves, Dallara-Honda, 225.733
5. (7) Danica Patrick, Dallara-Honda, 225.197
6. (11) Tony Kanaan, Dallara-Honda, 224.794
7. (26) Marco Andretti, Dallara-Honda, 224.417
8. (4T) Vitor Meira, Dallara-Honda, 224.346
9. (27) Hideki Mutoh, Dallara-Honda, 223.887
10. (20) Ed Carpenter, Dallara-Honda, 223.835
11. (12) Tomas Scheckter, Dallara-Honda, 223.496
12. (99) Townsend Bell, Dallara-Honda, 222.539
13. (06) Graham Rahal, Dallara-Honda, 222.531
14. (14) Darren Manning, Dallara-Honda, 222.430
15. (18) Bruno Junqueira, Dallara-Honda, 222.330
16. (02) Justin Wilson, Dallara-Honda, 222.267
17. (15) Buddy Rice, Dallara-Honda, 222.101
18. (22) Davey Hamilton, Dallara-Honda, 222.017
19. (16) Alex Lloyd, Dallara-Honda, 221.788
20. (17T) Ryan Hunter-Reay, Dallara-Honda, 221.579
21. (24) John Andretti, Dallara-Honda, 221.550
22. (67) Sarah Fisher, Dallara-Honda, 221.246
23. (8) Will Power, Dallara-Honda, 221.136
24. (41) Jeff Simmons, Dallara-Honda, 221.103
25. (5) Oriol Servia, Dallara-Honda, 220.767
26. (33) EJ Viso, Dallara-Honda, 220.356
27. (23) Milka Duno, Dallara-Honda, 220.305
28. (19) Mario Moraes, Dallara-Honda, 219.716
29. (36) Enrique Bernoldi, Dallara-Honda, 219.422
30. (34) Jaime Camara, Dallara-Honda, 219.345
31. (2) A.J. Foyt IV, Dallara-Honda, 219.184
32. (91) Buddy Lazier, Dallara-Honda, 219.015
33. (25) Marty Roth, Dallara-Honda, 218.965

INDYCAR SERIES POST-QUALIFYING NOTES:
- There are four former Indianapolis 500 winners in the starting field: Buddy Lazier (1996), Helio Castroneves (2001, 2002), Buddy Rice (2004) and Dan Wheldon (2005). Between them they have five victories. The record for most former winners in the field is 10, in 1992. The fewest, other than the inaugural race in 1911, is zero in 1912.
- Dan Wheldon has led 204 career laps in the Indianapolis 500, more than any other driver in this year’s field. Tony Kanaan is the only other driver in the field who has led more than 200 career laps in the Indianapolis 500. Kanaan has led 202 laps.
- There is a combined 104 previous Indianapolis 500 starts among the 33 drivers in this year’s field. The record is 260 years of experience, set in 1987 and 1992. There were 160 years of combined experience in last year’s field.
- The oldest driver is Marty Roth, 49. The youngest qualifier is Graham Rahal, 19.
- This is the 10th-closest matched field by time in Indianapolis 500 history. 5.3748 seconds separate fastest qualifier Scott Dixon and slowest qualifier Marty Roth. The record is 3.2422 seconds set in 2001.
- Troy Ruttman became the youngest Indianapolis 500 winner when he won the 1952 race at age 22. Ruttman started the 1952 race from the seventh position. Marco Andretti will start the 2008 Indianapolis 500 from the seventh position. Marco Andretti is 21.
- Buddy Lazier qualified for his 16th Indianapolis 500. This will be his first start from the Last Row. Previously, his lowest starting position was 28th in 2004.
- Lazier is the most experienced driver in the field, with 15 previous Indianapolis 500 starts. The record is 35, set in consecutive years from 1958-1992 by A.J. Foyt.
- Eleven rookies have qualified for the Indianapolis 500, the most since 13 in 1997. This year’s rookies are Hideki Mutoh, Graham Rahal, Justin Wilson, Alex Lloyd, Ryan Hunter-Reay, Will Power, Oriol Servia, E.J. Viso, Mario Moraes, Enrique Bernoldi and Jaime Camara. Mutoh is the fastest rookie at 223.887 mph.
- In addition to the 11 rookies in the race, there are two drivers (Townsend Bell, Bruno Junqueira) who did not start in last year’s race.
- There are nine graduates of Firestone Indy Lights in the field. They are Marco Andretti, Jaime Camara, Ed Carpenter, A.J. Foyt IV, Alex Lloyd, Hideki Mutoh, Graham Rahal, Marty Roth and Jeff Simmons.
- If a driver is going to win the Indianapolis 500, he or she will most likely do it in either their third or fourth start, based on past results. Thirteen drivers won for the first time in their third start, and 13 drivers won for the first time in their fourth start. The 2008 Indianapolis 500 will be Danica Patrick's fourth Indianapolis 500.
- The 2008 Indianapolis 500 will be Tomas Scheckter's seventh Indianapolis 500 start and his seventh start from the fourth row. Scheckter is starting the 2008 race from the 11th position.
- Townsend Bell qualified a career-best 12th for the Indianapolis 500. He qualified 15th in his only other start in 2006.
- Darren Manning qualified a career-best 14th for the Indianapolis 500. His previous best was 15th in 2004 and 2007.
- Davey Hamilton qualified 18th, his best start since starting 11th in 1999. Hamilton started 20th, 26th and 28th in his last three Indianapolis 500s (2007, 2001 and 2000, respectively).
- Milka Duno qualified 27th, bettering her rookie effort of 29th last year.