Tony Kanaan - Indianapolis 500 Misfortunes

Indianapolis 500 Misfortunes

Since arriving at Indianapolis in 2002, Kanaan has experienced notable bad luck, and despite consistently being competitive, has failed to achieve victory. A growing sentiment among media and fans is labeling Kanaan among the greatest and most popular drivers to never win the race. From 2003–2010, Kanaan drove for team owner Michael Andretti, who also never won the race as a driver, which is referenced in the Andretti Curse.

Tony Kanaan has participated in the Indianapolis 500 ten times, with one pole position, and a best finish of second (2004), but zero wins. He ranks third on the all-time list of Indy 500 lap leaders who have not won the race (behind Michael Andretti and Rex Mays). Through 2011, he ranks 46th all-time in total laps completed, and 25th in laps completed by non-winners.

• 2002: In his rookie year, Kanaan led 23 laps and was leading the race on lap 90, when Jimmy Vasser and Bruno Junqueira both slowed with mechanical problems. An oil leak on the track went unnoticed, and Kanaan spun in the oil, crashing out of the lead in turn 3. One year earlier in 2001, Kanaan's friend and former Indy Lights teammate at Tasman Motorsports, Helio Castroneves, won Indy as a rookie. In 2002, Castroneves repeated, winning the race back-to-back.
• 2003: Kanaan started second, and finished third. He led two laps, but was no match for the Penske cars, who finished 1st–2nd.
• 2004: Kanaan ran among the leaders all day, and led 28 laps. Rain halted the race, however, 20 laps short of the finish, and Kanaan managed only second place.
• 2005: Kanaan won his first Indy 500 pole position, and led 54 laps. He was not a factor in the final 50 laps, and dropped to 8th place at the finish. Kanaan's Andretti Green Racing teammate Dan Wheldon won the race.
• 2006: Pit stop shuffling in the final 20 laps saw Kanaan inherit the lead on lap 183. Kanaan needed one final splash-and-go pit stop, but a caution came out on lap 191. Kanaan made his stop under yellow, and the sequence saw him lose the lead. Running 4th, Kanaan was blocked inadvertently by Michael Andretti, and lost momentum. On the final lap, Dan Wheldon slipped by to take 4th, and Kanaan finished 5th.
• 2007: Kanaan was leading the race just beyond the halfway point when rain brought out the red flag on lap 113. If the rain continued, Kanaan could have been declared the winner, since the race had passed the point in which it had become official. The rain stopped, and the race was resumed. Kanaan continued to lead, and the leaders pit under a caution on lap 151. During the restart on lap 156, Kanaan came up on the back of Jaques Lazier, lost control, and spun into the entrance of the pits, blowing a tire. An angry Kanaan was credited with 12th place, while his Andretti Green Racing teammate Dario Franchitti won the race.
• 2008: On lap 94, Kanaan set an all-time Indy 500 record by leading at least one lap in his first seven consecutive starts. The lead was short-lived however. On lap 105, Marco Andretti was trying to pass Kanaan in turn three, which sent Kanaan into the marbles. Kanaan lost control, crashed into the outside wall, then collected the car of Sarah Fisher.
• 2009: On lap 98, while running third Tony Kanaan suffered a drive shaft failure at speed down the backstrech. The car suddenly pitched into the wall at the entrance to turn 3. The car lost steering, bounced off the wall, then went straight into the wall in turn 3. In television interviews, Kanaan appeared visibly shaken. The next day, Tony stated the hit was recorded at 175 Gs.
• 2010: On the morning of pole day, Kanaan spun out of turn 1, and wrecked hard in the south short chute. The crash prevented Kanaan from making a qualifying attempt on Saturday. The following day (Bump Day), Kanaan was practicing in his backup car, when he suffered another, nearly identical crash, in the same part of the track. The second crash put in question Kanaan's chances of qualifying, and set the team and driver back a considerable amount of time and effort. Kanaan finally managed to qualify, and started the race from the final row in 33rd place. On race day, Kanaan charged to the front, and ran as high as second in the last ten laps of the race. Kanaan nearly matched Tom Sneva's 1980 record of being the only driver to start last (33rd) and lead a lap. A fuel strategy gamble failed, and Kanaan was forced to make one final splash-and-go pit stop with 4 laps to go. The pit stop dropped him to 11th in the final standings, but garned much praise from the fans and media for the accomplishment.
• 2011: Kanaan left Andretti Autosport, and wound up driving for KV Racing Technology. He qualified 22nd and worked his way up to 4th by lap 60. In the pits on lap 61, however, he was involved in a mishap with Pippa Mann. She was pulling out of her pit box as he was trying to pull in his, and he was forced to overshoot his pit stall. After being pushed back and receiving service, he dropped down to 24th place. He charged dramatically back up to 2nd place by lap 178. He pitted for fuel with 21 laps to go, which dropped him to an eventual 4th place finish. Kanaan later stated he felt he did not have a car fast enough to win.
• 2012: On a restart on lap 186, Kanaan made a bold move going from 5th to 1st into turn one, and led for seven laps. With less than six laps to go, he was passed for the lead on lap 194, and finished third.