Toon IndyCar: MEIJER INDY 300

We've made our way to the Kentucky Bluegrass for round 24 of the Verizon IndyCar Series, the MEIJER INDY 300 presented by Coca-Cola! After Dan Kuso's wreck last time around in Chicago, the lead is now just 2 points between the Ganassi teammates. Can Kuso hold down the fort or will Tennyson sneak in and snatch the points lead heading to the final 2 races? Here's how they'll line up:

1. Ben Tennyson (10)
2. Todd Daring (2)
3. Timmy Turner (16)
4. Phineas Flynn (99)
5. Tai Kamiya (15)
6. Otto Rocket (26)
7. Tommy Turnbull (20)
8. Ish Taylor (14)
9. Randy Cunningham (12)
10. Eli Shane (17)
11. Manny Rivera (25)
12. Sonic the Hedgehog (11)
13. Spongebob Squarepants (21)
14. Ferb Fletcher (77)
15. Johnny Test (4)
16. Ash Ketchum (8)
17. Ashoka Tano (83)
18. Becky Botsford (27)
19. Alvin Seville (28)
20. Hank Hill (22)
21. Tommy Pickles (3)
22. Dipper Pines (18)
23. Dan Kuso (9)
24. Jimmy Neutron (67)
25. Guy Hamdon (19)
26. Wyatt Williams (7)
27. Nigel Uno (98)
28. Mordecai (34)
29. Gumball Waterson (91)
30. Jonesy Garcia (6)
31. Abigail Lincoln (5)
32. Ricky Cervantes (41)
33. Arnold Shortman (68)


Track Specs:

Description: 1.5 mile oval
Turns: 4
Distance: 200 laps/300 miles


Race Conditions:

Air Temp.: 78 degrees
Track Temp.: 92 degrees
Weather: Cloudy, 60% chance of rain
Green Flag Time: 7:45 PM (originally 7:52 PM)


ABC?


Allen Bestwick (voiceover): Last time by, the IndyCar Series found its way to Chicago, where the points took another dramatic turn. With Dan Kuso slamming the wall early in the race, it was open season in terms of the championship....and Ben Tennyson took full advantage of the opportunity presented to him by his teammate. With a win in Chicago, Tennyson now stands just 2 points shy of Kuso as we head to Kentucky. It's Kuso and Tennyson....vs. the rest of IndyCar's finest in the Bluegrass State. Verizon IndyCar Series racing from Kentucky....NEXT ON ABC!


(ESPN SpeedWorld 1998-2004 theme)


Allen Bestwick: ABC Sports presents....VERIZON INDYCAR SERIES RACING live from the Kentucky Speedway in Sparta, Kentucky! For the first time since 2011, the Verizon IndyCar Series will race in the Bluegrass State. With 3 races to go, the championship has tightened up. Now just 2 points separate Ganassi teammates Dan Kuso and Ben Tennyson. Tennyson finds himself on the pole tonight, while Kuso starts deep in the field. Will the points leader come up with a big win or will Tennyson snatch the points lead away as we go into the homestretch? Welcome into our Quicken Loans ESPN Pit Studio. Alongside Scott Goodyear and Rusty Wallace, I'm Allen Bestwick. I'll tell you right now that we are in the hurry-up. We were originally scheduled to start at 7:52 PM, but IndyCar has moved the start time of the race up 7 minutes to try and beat the inclement weather that's closing in on the Central Kentucky area. Let's head down trackside.


Track Announcer: Kentucky, ARE YOU READY?! Please welcome our grand marshal, one of the stars of ABC's hit comedy 'The Middle' and the star of the upcoming Disney XD series 'Star vs. The Forces of Evil', EDEN SHER!


Eden Sher: HELLO, KENTUCKY! Are you guys ready to go green? DRIVERS! START! YOUR! ENNNNNNNNGINNNNES!



(33 900 horsepower engines fire up)


Allen Bestwick: That's our good friend, Eden Sher, from 'The Middle'. That airs Wednesdays at 8 here on ABC. She's got a new show, 'Star vs. The Forces of Evil' due out in the Spring. Take a look our Firestone starting grid. Ben Tennyson starts on pole tonight, gets the 2 bonus points for doing so, putting him 1 point off of teammate Dan Kuso.

Scott Goodyear: Those are big bonus points right there, Allen. Once we start here in Kentucky, Tennyson will actually have the lead by 43 points. That 23rd place qualifying effort by Kuso may prove to be costly when we get to Vegas.

Rusty Wallace: Give a call to Spongebob Squarepants, his best qualifying effort this season. He's looking to try and build some momentum for 2015. This season hasn't been kind to him at all.

Scott Goodyear: Guess that's what he gets for never having passed his boating exam.

Allen Bestwick: We kid because we care here, everyone. 33 cars set to go 200 laps around this 1.5 mile oval to make up the 300 mile distance. Pit speed here is 60 MPH....

Scott Goodyear: That's gonna be the hard part, going from about 225 MPH down to 60 on pit lane.

Rusty Wallace: There's that pit window, 38-42 laps. We have a 4 stop race on our hands. In practice, we saw teams stretch their fuel to around 54 laps, so we could see some teams employ a 3 stop strategy tonight.

Allen Bestwick: Pace car peels away, Ben Tennyson will lead them off of turn 4 and the 24th round of the Verizon IndyCar Series for 2014 IS GREEN! WE'RE UNDERWAY IN KENTUCKY!


(START - 200 Lap Race)


Rusty Wallace: Tennyson just cut off Timmy Turner! 16 never saw it coming!

Scott Goodyear: What that did, though, was leave the bottom lane open for Todd Daring in the 2! He's already around the 16 for 2nd, now searching for a lane around the 10 for the lead!

Allen Bestwick: Ben Tennyson blocks Todd Daring on the bottom! It was like he read Daring's mind!

Rusty Wallace: Now that's impossible! No one can read minds!

Allen Bestwick: Dan Kuso already up inside the top 15, he's now 13th. As they run right now, Kuso is 33 points behind teammate Ben Tennyson, make that 31 as he gets by Eli Shane in the 17 and the 21 of Squarepants, brings Kuso to 11th here at lap #6.

Rusty Wallace: Once Kuso gets inside the top 10, as you see him getting by Tommy Turnbull in the 20 for 10th place, every position from here until the 4th position is worth 2 more points. 1st, 2nd and 3rd place pay at 50, 40 and 35 points, respectively. As Kuso moves up, he closes the gap on his teammate as they run.

Allen Bestwick: Ben Tennyson has stretched his lead to 1.6 seconds over 2nd place Todd Daring. 11 of 200 laps complete here in Kentucky, Tennyson leads, we go Side-By-Side presented by Verizon!


(Lap 58 - Caution 1)


Allen Bestwick: 58 laps complete here in Kentucky, under caution for the 1st time today as race leader Johnny Test finds the wall in turn 3 and you can see the frustration in his face.

Scott Goodyear: There's the culprit....our points leader.

Allen Bestwick: Dan Kuso in the 9 car.

Rusty Wallace: And I wonder if Kuso was trying to put Test a lap down, Test was trying to block, might've gotten tapped by the 9 and probably overcorrected.

Allen Bestwick: Whatever may have happened, it's put us under the yellow for the 1st time tonight just after a round of green flag stops, 60 laps complete here in the Meijer Indy 300 at Kentucky. Dan Kuso leads, Ben Tennyson 2nd, Todd Daring runs 3rd, Tommy Pickles 4th and Phineas Flynn rounds out the top 5.


(RESTART: Lap 65 - 7 caution laps)

Allen Bestwick: Back to green flag racing here in Kentucky, 65 laps complete, Dan Kuso jets to the front in a crucial race for him as he tries to defend his points lead! Dave Burns has an update for us.


Dave Burns: Johnny Test, you were running 16th prior to getting spun out there. What happened?


Johnny: Well, I just saw the replays. I was trying to block the 9 in the hopes of a yellow flag. Dan tapped me on the right rear and I guess I overcorrected. We got 2 races left in the year, we'll go to Kansas, try to win one before the season's out.


Dave Burns: Johnny Test with another DNF in 2014 here in Kentucky.


(Lap 98 - Caution 2)


Allen Bestwick: 2 laps shy of halfway and an official race here in Kentucky, under caution for the 2nd time tonight, debris in turn 2 is the cause of the yellow this time. Let's go to our Pennzoil TRIPLE PITS and Vince Welch.


Vince Welch: Tommy Pickles, top of your screen, 4 tires and fuel for the 3 car and he's away! He was running 4th before he stopped. Dan Kuso pits from the lead, 4 tires and fuel for the 9, same strategy for teammate Ben Tennyson, 4 tires and fuel for the 10 and the Ganassi boys are away!


Top 10:

1. Dan Kuso (9)
2. Ben Tennyson (10)
3. Ash Ketchum (8)
4. Alvin Seville (28)
5. Todd Daring (2)
6. Tommy Pickles (3)
7. Phineas Flynn (99)
8. Timmy Turner (16)
9. Ish Taylor (14)
10. Randy Cunningham (12)


(RESTART: Lap 104 - 6 caution laps)


Allen Bestwick: 96 laps to go here in Kentucky, back to green flag racing and we go FULL THROTTLE!


(Full Throttle graphic)



(Lap 168 - Caution 4)


Allen Bestwick: BIG TROUBLE! TENNYSON AND KUSO HARD INTO THE WALL!

Scott Goodyear: And the complexion of not only the race, but the championship, changes again.

Allen Bestwick: Caution out for the 4th time tonight, 32 laps to go here in Kentucky. Let's go back, see how this happened.

Rusty Wallace: Looks like a tie up between teammates. Ben Tennyson in the 10 gets into the back of the 9 of Dan Kuso, Tennyson had nowhere to go, slammed right into the 9, sent both of them into the wall.

Scott Goodyear: And look who's leading the race, guys! Ash Ketchum in the 8 car!

Allen Bestwick: First laps Ketchum has led since Texas back in June. Could tonight be the night that Ash wins his first race of 2014? We're 30 laps away from finding out. You're watching the Verizon IndyCar Series on ABC.


(RESTART: Lap 180 - 12 caution laps)


Allen Bestwick: 20 laps to go this time by, green flag is back out, back to racing in Kentucky! Ash Ketchum to the front in the 8 car!

Scott Goodyear: Ketchum knows his mission. He has to defend the points lead of his two teammates, Ben Tennyson and Dan Kuso. With those 2 now out of the race, they have now left it to him and Ashoka Tano in the 83 to keep Andretti Autosport and Team Penske at bay tonight.

Allen Bestwick: Tano runs 11th, highest Andretti car is Otto Rocket in 6th, highest running Penske car is Todd Daring in 2nd.


Andretti Autosport:

Otto Rocket (26) - 6th
Becky Bostford (27) - 9th
Alvin Seville (28) - 10th
Manny Rivera (25) - 14th
Mordecai (34) - 19th


Team Penske:

Todd Daring (2) - 2nd
Tommy Pickles (3) - 4th
Randy Cunningham (12) - 8th


Rusty Wallace: Getting down to it with 14 to go here, Allen. Ketchum's gotta be thinking 'do I have enough fuel to go the distance?' His last stop was on lap 156, that's 44 laps to go, just outside the window to make it on fuel.

Allen Bestwick: This race usually does come down to fuel strategy in the final laps. Dave Burns has more on the 8 car. Dave?


Dave Burns: During the last yellow, I talked with Ketchum's crew chief, Gary Oak. I asked him if his driver has enough fuel to make it to the checkers. He told me then that they were 2 laps short. Now with 12 to go, Oak's told Ketchum that he's good to go to the finish. We'll see if he's right. Allen?


Allen Bestwick: Thanks, Dave. This time by, 10 laps to go in Kentucky! Ash Ketchum's lead now 2.1 seconds over 2nd place Todd Daring in the 2 car, another six tenths of a second back is where you'll find Timmy Turner in the 16 and the 3 of Tommy Pickles battling it out for the 3rd and 4th positions. Phineas Flynn is a second back of that battle and under siege from Otto Rocket in the 26! 7 to go here in the Bluegrass State! SPIN IN TURN 3! THAT'S FERB FLETCHER IN THE 77!

Rusty Wallace: No caution yet! We stay under green with 6 to go!

Scott Goodyear: Now we have a yellow.

Allen Bestwick: Just like at Chicago, we will end the race under the yellow flag. Pace car picks up the field with 195 laps on the board, 196 this time by. 2 of the Ganassi cars, the points leaders, Dan Kuso and Ben Tennyson, crashed out late in the race. Ash Ketchum, their teammate, took charge and led what will have been the final 32 laps to claim his first victory of 2014.

Rusty Wallace: And this NTT Data Ganassi team....they needed this win. They haven't had the best of seasons. This is a much needed win for Ash Ketchum and the 8 team.

Allen Bestwick: White flag this time by for Ketchum. This has been a long time coming, but it'll be well worth it. TWIN CHECKERS COME OUT FOR ASH KETCHUM! HE'LL WIN AT KENTUCKY!


(8 Team Communications)


Gary: Ash, you deserve to celebrate. You are now a winner in the IndyCar Series!

Ash: AWESOME JOB, GUYS!

Pikachu: PIKA PIKACHU! (Translation: Congratulations, buddy!)

Ash: Thanks, Pikachu!

May: Hey, Ash....I've got a little surprise for you after we're done in Victory Lane!

Ash: Uhh....alright, May.

Pikachu: PIKAPI, PIKACHU. (Translation: Ash, you're in BIG trouble)



Results:


1. Ash Ketchum (8)
2. Todd Daring (2)
3. Tommy Pickles (3)
4. Timmy Turner (16)
5. Randy Cunningham (12)
6. Phineas Flynn (99)
7. Ashoka Tano (83)
8. Alvin Seville (28)
9. Eli Shane (17)
10. Otto Rocket (26)
11. Hank Hill (22)
12. Tommy Turnbull (20)
13. Spongebob Squarepants (21)
14. Ish Taylor (14)
15. Sonic the Hedgehog (11)
16. Manny Rivera (25)
17. Dipper Pines (18)
18. Jimmy Neutron (68)
19. Guy Hamdon (19)
20. Jonesy Garcia (6)
21. Wyatt Williams (7)
22. Tai Kamiya (15)
23. Ricky Cervantes (41)
24. Abigail Lincoln (5)
25. Becky Botsford (27)
26. Mordecai (34)
27. Nigel Uno (98)
28. Jimmy Neutron (67)
29. Ferb Fletcher (77)
30. Gumball Waterson (91)
31. Dan Kuso (9) (DNF: Accident)
32. Ben Tennyson (10) (DNF: Accident)
33. Johnny Test (4) (DNF: Accident)


Points (after 24 of 26 races):

1. Dan Kuso - 825 points
2. Ben Tennyson - 824 points
3. Otto Rocket - 812 points
4. Tommy Pickles - 786 points
5. Randy Cunningham - 767 points
6. Phineas Flynn - 700 points
7. Timmy Turner - 673 points
8. Alvin Seville - 595 points
9. Todd Daring - 521 points
10. Nigel Uno - 490 points
11. Ash Ketchum - 490 points
12. Ish Taylor - 480 points
13. Dipper Pines - 460 points
14. Ashoka Tano - 459 points
15. Eli Shane - 440 points
16. Guy Hamdon - 426 points
17. Becky Bostford - 416 points
18. Johnny Test - 416 points
19. Hank Hill - 413 points
20. Manny Rivera - 346 points
21. Tai Kamiya - 344 points
22. Abigail Lincoln - 342 points
23. Ferb Fletcher - 340 points
24. Sonic the Hedgehog - 340 points
25. Jimmy Neutron - 320 points
26. Ricky Cervantes - 308 points
27. Arnold Shortman - 308 points
28. Jonesy Garcia - 303 points
29. Tommy Turnbull - 261 points
30. Mordecai - 229 points
31. Wyatt Williams - 199 points
32. Spongebob Squarepants - 175 points
33. Gumball Watterson - 171 points

Next Race: ROADRUNNER TURBO INDY 300


SEE YOU IN KANSAS!