INDIANAPOLIS - The cupboard at the ol' Brickyard seems to be a little bare.

For the second straight year, the big names in Indycar racing, Unser, Andretti, Rahal, Penske, are nowhere to be found at the famed oval on the corner of 16th and Georgetown.

That could be changing.

With proposed rule changes at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the rift between IMS president Tony George's Indy Racing League (IRL) and the established Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART) could be brought to a simmer and allow the big names back to the Brickyard.

"We really want anybody that wants to compete in the Indy Racing League or the Indianapolis 500 to feel that they have an opportunity to do that," George said. "I think there is today an opportunity for them to do that, all things being equal. There's nothing keeping them away today."

An official announcement on the rule changes is expected Friday. The changes have mostly to do with building the cars and the manufacturers and specifications.

"I've had several conversations with Al (Unser) Jr., and he's expressed a lot of his personal feelings to me," George said. "And I know there are others out there who feel like they want to be back at Indianapolis."

The marriage between the two auto racing leagues has been compared by some as what Major League Baseball does with the American and National leagues or what the NFL does with its two conferences.

"What we're looking at basically is there're lots of kinds of racing, right," IRL vice president Leo Mehl said. "And there're lots of specifications for racing: different cars, difference engines, different lengths of races."

A Little Louder Sound

For the fans that did turn out Saturday (which only about 35,000 did), it was a different sound coming from the race cars. Because of new rules, the engines are more close to production model engines and are normally-aspirated. They no longer have turbochargers, wastegate, pop-off valves or special headers.

Thus creating a louder sound coming from the cars.

Hemelgarn Drops

Infiniti Engines

After preparing to run four cars with Infiniti engines, the first time Nissan has gotten into building Indy engines, car owner Ron Hemelgarn decided not to run those engines in two cars, Buddy Lazier and Mike Groff.

Lyn St. James and Johnny Unser will stay with the Infiniti engines.

"We ran as hard and fast as we could with the Nissan," Hemelgarn said. "It was a hard decision."

Lazier, the defending 500 champion, was only 20th best in practice with month, while Groff, the current IRL points leader, was 25th.

Award Named In Brayton's Honor

The IMS announced the creation of the Scott Brayton Driver's Trophy, presented to the driver who best exemplifies the character and racing spirit of the late two-time Indy 500 pole winner. It will be presented annually to the Indy 500 entrant who extends the legacy of Brayton through sportsmanship, competitiveness and goodwill. The recipient will receive $25,000 cash and a uniquely-crafted crystal trophy designed by Tiffany's.

Groff Is 2,500th

Mike Groff was not only the first car to qualify for this year's Indy 500, but he made history by becoming the 2,500th driver in Speedway history to run a lap of at least 200 mph when he ran a 208.943 on his fourth and final qualifying lap. Tom Sneva ran the first 200 mph lap in IMS history when he turned a 200.401 in 1977.

Will They Even Have 33?

The official entry list for qualifications for the first day included only 35 cars, including four backups and two cars that have no official drivers listed. At this rate, the Indy 500 might be hard pressed to find 33 cars to fill out its field next weekend. Only 39 cars have even ran a lap of practice during the month of May.

"Sure, there's going to be 33-cars starting," IMS president Tony George said. "I mean, it's our intent to start a full field of cars. I think a lot has been made of the engine situation, but we have a lot of challenges that we have to meet beyond the 33 car field."

Twenty-three cars qualified after the first weekend.

Only Natural

Dr. Jack Miller, an Indianapolis-area dentist, has the nickname "The Racing Dentist." Miller's sponsor for his IRL races - Crest toothpaste - of course. Miller's wife, Elizabeth, is also a dentist.

"Oh, man it's the quickest I've gone," Miller said. "We did the quickest laps of the month during these qualification laps. I would like to say I want to go to Disney World, but I'm going to go promote Crest toothpaste." [[In-content Ad]]