HELIO . . . DANCING WITH THE GUARDS
By Hydra

Of course you didn’t see it.

It was in Canada. On some tiny, nobody’s-ever-heard-of-it cable channel called Versus. Probably fewer saw it live than were in the mostly empty grandstands at the Brickyard 400.
And now it’s a You Tube sensation.

The scrumptulicious Penske shoe Helio Castroneves was leading at Edmonton on the final restart. Then, according to IndyCar series boss Brian Barnhart, Helio blocked teammate Will Power. The stewards told Helio to lift, but he didn’t have the willpower to do so. So they handed the win to Team Target Ganassi’s Scott Dixon.
Cue that fiery latin temper . . . .


Okay, so the NASCAR nuts will say that it was no where near the Donnybrook of "Cale ‘n Donny" at Daytona in ‘79. And the pocket-sized Castroneves hardly threatened any kind of a Jet Li smackdown to that smiling security guard (talk about a teacup Chihuahua going after a Doberman). But it’s still fun to see some unscripted passion erupt in motorsports.

No doubt that Helio and Penske got robbed. And IndyCar’s lack of proper television coverage, competing engine manufacturers and American drivers all contribute to its near invisibility. Still, for all its faults, Helio did put on a show last Sunday.