INDIANAPOLIS -- A.J. Foyt IV covered as much ground going backward as he did going forward on his first qualification attempt for the Indianapolis 500.\nThe 18-year-old grandson of the four-time Indy winner made a 180-degree spin coming out of the second turn on his first qualifying lap Sunday. He avoided hitting the wall and the car fishtailed in reverse until he brought it under control, coasting backward almost the entire length of the backstretch.\n"It was a pretty interesting ride, one I'm not sure I'd want to repeat," the younger Foyt said.\nThe car came to a stop facing backward near the end of the 3,300-foot backstretch. Foyt was not injured. He came back later in his backup car and qualified at 224.177 mph, becoming the youngest known starter in Indy history.\n"My front end was dragging on my warmup laps, but I didn't think it would affect my run," the rookie driver said of his earlier attempt. "It just broke loose coming off of Turn 2. I was really lucky to stay out of the wall. Probably if I had spun a little earlier, I would have been in the wall."\nFoyt was the second-slowest qualifier for the May 25 race, putting him between Robbie Buhl and Sarah Fisher in the provisional lineup.\n"I'm just glad to be a part of it," he said.\nHis grandfather and team-owner started 12th and finished 16th in his rookie race in 1958. The elder Foyt retired as a driver before qualifications in 1993, the year before his grandson started racing junior dragsters.\n"A lot of mistakes were made today. That's the slowest he's run since his rookie test," the elder Foyt said. "At least he stayed out of the wall."\nFoyt IV, whose father, Tony Foyt, is A.J.'s eldest son, was the champion last year in the new Infiniti Pro Series, the IRL's developmental program.
THAT'S MY BOY\nMario Andretti remembered the first time his son, Michael, passed him on the racetrack.\n"It was at the Meadowlands," recalled Mario. "I started from the pole and Michael was behind me.\n"We got to a real tight corner and he tried to go by me. I said, `No way.' But he gave me a little love tap and went by. I was really mad for a minute. Than I thought, "That's my boy."\nThe two Andrettis were teammates for several years with Newman/Haas Racing.\nMichael Andretti, who has the most wins among active drivers in American open-wheel racing, will retire following the May 25 Indianapolis 500 to focus on running his new Andretti Green Racing team. The 40-year-old began his Indy Car career in 1983.\nHis 63-year-old father, who retired following the 1994 season, said at a retirement party for Michael on Saturday night, "I know he wants to be like (team owners) Carl Haas, Roger Penske and Chip Ganassi, but he's going to be Michael.\n"As a driver, he loves to see the checkered flag. He'll be the same as an owner."\nMichael Andretti qualified at 227.739 mph Sunday for his 14th start at Indy. His best finishes were second in 1991 and third in 2001.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY?\nHelio Castroneves, the two-time defending Indianapolis 500 winner, celebrated his 28th birthday with a surprise cake from ABC Sports. But that wasn't his only surprise.\nAs Castroneves was being interviewed Saturday with Penske teammate Gil de Ferran and Andretti Green Racing driver Tony Kanaan, Kanaan grabbed the cake and planted it in Castroneves' face.\nLaughing, his face covered with cake and frosting, Castroneves turned to announcer Gary Gerould and said, "Can we go to a commercial?"\nCastroneves was the fastest qualifier Sunday with a four-lap average of 231.725 mph and will start the race from the pole position.
