Schmidt, Panther make Indy entries official for Hearn, B. Lazier
Sam Schmidt Motorsports filed an entry for the 89th Indianapolis 500 for driver Richie Hearn, while Panther Racing officially named 1996 winner Buddy Lazier as the driver of one of its three entries.
Both moves were announced earlier this month and officially filed March 29.
The 89th Indianapolis 500 is scheduled for Sunday, May 29 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Entries must be postmarked by midnight Wednesday, April 6.
Hearn, from Henderson, Nev., will drive the No. 70 Meijer/Coca-Cola Racing Special Panoz/Chevrolet/Firestone, with an identical backup car entered. Chris Griffis is the chief mechanic, and Michael Crawford is the team manager.
Lazier, from Vail, Colo., will drive the No. 95 Panther Racing
Dallara/Chevrolet/Firestone that was entered along with an identical backup Feb. 28 with the other two Panther entries, driven by Tomas Scheckter and Tomas Enge.
Hearn will attempt to make his sixth Indianapolis 500 start, while Lazier will seek his 13th start in the “Greatest Spectacle in Racing.”
Both drivers enjoyed their greatest Indianapolis success in the 1996 race. Lazier won with a stirring late pass of Davy Jones, while Hearn finished third.
2000 IndyCar® Series champion Lazier has been one of the most successful drivers at Indianapolis in the last decade, with five consecutive top-seven finishes from 1996-2000.
2005 INDIANAPOLIS 500 ENTRIES (as of March 29)
Driver
Entrant
Car
C/E/T
Entry Date
Tomas Enge (R)
Panther Racing
2, 2T Rockstar Panther Racing
Chevrolet
D/C/F
Feb. 28
Tomas Scheckter
Panther Racing
4, 4T Pennzoil Panther Dallara
D/C/F
Feb. 28
Buddy Lazier (W)
Panther Racing
95, 95T Panther Racing
D/C/F
Feb. 28
Paul Dana (R)
Hemelgarn Racing
91, 91T Ethanol/Remy/LifeFitness
D/T/F
March 9
Alex Barron
Red Bull Cheever Racing
51, 51T Red Bull Cheever Racing
Toyota
D/T/F
March 9
Patrick Carpentier (R)
Red Bull Cheever Racing
83, 83T Red Bull Cheever Racing
Toyota
D/T/F
March 9
Richie Hearn
Sam Schmidt Motorsports
70, 70T Meijer/Coca-Cola Racing
Special
P/C/F
March 29
Key: C/E/T-Chassis/engine/tire; D-Dallara; P-Panoz; C-Chevrolet; H-Honda; T-Toyota; F-Firestone; (W)-Former
Indianapolis 500 winner; (R)-Indianapolis 500 rookie; TBA-to be announced.
ENTRY SUMMARY
DRIVERS (7)
Former race winners (1): Buddy Lazier (1996).
Former pole winners: None.
Rookies (3): Patrick Carpentier, Paul Dana, Tomas Enge.
U.S. born (4): Alex Barron, Paul Dana, Richie Hearn, Buddy Lazier.
Foreign born (3): Patrick Carpentier, Canada; Tomas Enge, Czech Republic; Tomas Scheckter,
South Africa.
Youngest: Tomas Scheckter, 24.
Oldest: Buddy Lazier, 37.
Most previous starts: Buddy Lazier, 12.
CARS (14)
Chassis: Dallara 12, Panoz 2.
Engines: Chevrolet 8, Toyota 6.
***
Indy 500 tickets: To purchase tickets, camping or parking for the 89th Indianapolis 500, contact the IMS ticket office at (800) 822-INDY or log on to indianapolismotorspeedway.com.
