Recapping the last 72 hours

(Danica's garage after the second rain shower)

Recapping the last 72 hours of INDYCAR

The IZOD IndyCar Series completed its second most important weekend of May 48 hours ago and a lot transpired, IndyCar Garage recaps it all.

1. Alex Tagliani captures the pole

Tagliani, driving for Sam Schmidt Motorsports captures the pole in dramatic fashion during the fast nine shootout, easily the biggest story of the day correct? Well , kind of of. Still not in the race are four Andretti Autosport cars, led by the ever so interesting #7 of Danica Patrick and the #26 of Marco Andretti.

2. Simona captures a spot after a horrific crash

Simona De Silverstro, who talked with IndyCar Garage last Wednesday, somehow put her 2003 “PORKCHOP” Dallara in the race, after suffering second degree burns on her hands from a Fast Friday accident in turns 3 and 4. Simona, easily one of the most popular drivers in the IZOD IndyCar Series, will compete in her second Indy 500 on Sunday.

3. Good runs for non Penske/Ganassi drivers

Drivers like Jay Howard, Dan Wheldon, Oriol Servia, Bertrand Baguette, Pippa Man and Davey Hamilton all have to happy excited to be involved in the 95th running of the Indy 500. Outside of Servia, these drivers are not full time participates in the IZOD IndyCar Series. Howard , unlucky in his last two attempts to qualify at Indy, will finally get a chance to take the green flag with 32 other cars.

4. Bump Day lives up to the hype

Bump day lived up to the hype that had been building up to it since late April, two rain delays, several big names not in the field, and rumors of Charlie Seen in the garages all were examples of how bump day played out. In the end, Danica was safe, Tracy found a way, Briscoe put the backup in, and four women will start for the second straight year. Drivers like Jakes, Matos, and sebastian Saavedra didn’t surprise many when they couldn’t find the speed, but the entire Dragon program, and the meltdown of Andretti Autosport were hardly forgone conclusions.

5. Bump day spills into Monday

In a business decision, Ryan Hunter-Reay replaces Bruno Junqueira in the #41 A.J. Foyt ABC Supply IndyCar. The decision wasn’t popular with many of the drivers, nor with many fans, but deep down you have to understand the logic behind it. This isn’t the first time it’s happened, nor will it be the last, unless Randy Bernard changes it. Hunter-Reay is an American with big-name sponsors , Junqueira is a one-off driver, but a damn good one for that matter.

Coming Thursday:
Indy 500 Preview and more Indy 500 driver interviews from media day, check it all out at http://www.indycargarage.com/