Indy 500's 'Mr. Irrelevant'

The beginning of the 2010 Indianapolis 500 has been anything but traditional, as fan and race favorite Tony Kanaan wrecked twice in qualifying and barely made it into the race. Two other females qualified before Danica Patrick in 23rd, and Sebastian Saavedra discovered he qualified while in Methodist Hospital.

Nineteen-year-old Saavedra, driving for William Rast racing — a team Justin Timberlake sponsors — posted the slowest speed and was in 33rd place with only about an hour left of quals. But after a crash resulted in back pain, Saavedra was taken to get an MRI, and it looked as if his hope of qualifying was over.

However, due to two other drivers, including Paul Tracy, deciding to attempt additional qualifying attempts and forfeiting their original speeds, Saavedra became the sixth rookie to qualify for this year’s race and was shocked by his good fortune.

“I still can’t believe that I am in the Indianapolis 500,” Saavedra said via his blog. “I told someone today that maybe it is OK that I am sore from my crash on Sunday, because that means that this is real and I am not dreaming.”

While Saavedra will start in the last row, he will still be someone for fans to focus on, particularly if the regular Indy Car drivers struggle on the track. And if those same drivers continue to struggle, Saavedra could turn his current Mr. Irrelevant position into a high-ranking finish for his very first Indianapolis 500 race.