Marco to race twice in one day - July 12th!
Marco Andretti will be attempting to win two major races in one day when he races in both the American LeMans Series at Lime Rock Park, then flies 808 miles back to Nashville Superspeedway to compete in the Firestone Indy 200 later that night.

Race Nine: Richmond Bad Luck.
At the SunTrust Indy Challenge; Round 9 of the 2008 IndyCar® Series at Richmond International Raceway, Richmond, Va, Marco ran well but would eventually finish in ninth place. Marco got bitten by the race-record ninth, and final, caution of the night on this notorious short-track oval. The race was plagued by accidents in the early stages.

On lap 116, he passed Kanaan for second and then Jaime Camara for the lead. Camara had led since lap 71, when Kanaan had pitted for four tires and fuel. Andretti remained in the lead until lap 206, when he pitted under green for fuel. He ran 135 laps without pitting, thanks to five cautions that allowed him to conserve fuel. But by pitting under green he lost two laps and dropped to 12th. He would have made up those laps had the cars in front of him had to pit under green as well. They didn't. Andretti finished ninth, a lap down, shielding Tony as he raced on to win.

Marco Andretti on the SunTrust Indy Challenge: "I am incredibly disappointed. The Blockbuster car was the best car on the track today but good job to Tony for getting his first win of the year."

" It is a great shame for the Blockbuster team today. Marco drove a terrific race. It seemed like we had the car to win. Unfortunately that is the nature of these short ovals. We got caught out there when the other guys got to pit under yellow and that put us right to the back of the field. It is awfully tough from there for Marco to work his way back through. It is tough because I think a win was snatched from us, but our teammate won so it is a good day for AGR." - Eddie Jones - #26 car engineer.

Race Eight: Third place at Iowa.
A solid race for Marco at Iowa, racing within a second of the leader for most of the race and leading several laps.

Dan Wheldon, in a spare car on his thirtieth birthday, took the checkered flag - pushed close to the final lap by AGR's duelling teammates Hideki Mutoh and Marco Andretti. The pair raced very closely for the final stages, Marco looking to take Hideki and make a run for the lead.

"We were racing... It was good clean racing - I think it had to be good for the fans. It was good fun from the cockpit for sure. I'm proud of the Blockbuster boys - I think we were towards the front for most of the day. The rookies are good - they're a pain already! Hideki's on it this year for sure! ” said Marco after the race with Hideki in the final laps.

On the risky restart manoever past Danica on the final re-start: "I knew I could trust my teammate. Danica was looking out for me. She could have made it very tough on me and put me below the line. But you get a good run you've got to go with it. We just have to look after each other on the track - we always did but more so today. That's what we've have to keep doing and you'll see four Andretti Green cars towards the front, every race".

Marco remains in eighth place in the Championship - Watch out for Hideki: He's up to fifth as we get ready for Richmond.

Race Seven: Messin' with Texas - Marco DNF2.
For the second week running, Marco Andretti looked on for a decent haul of IndyCar Series points, maybe even the win, but, for the second week running, he ended his race in the wall with just a handful of laps to go, ending proceedings under yellow.

On the 222nd lap, Scott Dixon drove under Marco Andretti coming out of the third turn to get in front and went on to win the race.

Near the same spot a lap later, Ryan Hunter-Reay was on the bottom of the 1 1/2-mile, high-banked track trying to get past Andretti. But Hunter-Reay's car suddenly darted up into Andretti, sending both of them into the wall. IndyCar Series crews were unable to get the track cleared before the 228-lap race. It was the second straight IndyCar race finished under caution.

"I really feel bad for the whole Blockbuster crew. We were running so well, as was Ryan. I feel kind of bad for both of us, but the fact is there are some guys you can run close with and some guys you can't. He clearly hit the white line and that is that. We ran well today but, to me, that doesn't matter. We need to bring home results. It's very disappointing." said Marco to TV reporters after the race

"What really makes Texas unique is the banking. All of the cars are flat out for the whole race, so the entire field will be close throughout and that’s what the fans enjoy seeing. When you are on the track on your own, it feels incredibly fast. When you have 25 other cars out there with you, it feels even worse. The Blockbuster boys were good at Homestead, Kansas and Indianapolis and I think we’ll be very fast at Texas." - Marco before the race.

Race Engineer on the Blockbuster #26 car Eddie Jones added: "Last year we were running very competitively at Texas until a problem caused us to retire late in the race. We are confident of having a good race car again this year and expect to be competing for victory."

Race Six: Pole at the Mile
MARCO IN LATE CRASH With just two laps to go Marco was involved in a collision with Ed Carpenter, quickly followed by Vitor Meira. Eventual race winner Ryan Briscoe missed the crash by inches. Marco was not hurt. Marco had qualified with the fastest speed at the Mile and led over 40 laps from his pole position.

"We were racing and things like this happen. I lost the front end of the Indiana Jones/Blockbuster car and went up into him. It’s just a real shame because we could have had some decent points today."

Rahal had held provisional pole for much of the session in his Newman/Haas/Lanigan car, in a highly impressive performance on his debut at a short oval. But Marco Andretti, who was the penultimate car in the qualifying order, was 0.2 seconds faster than Rahal on his four-lap run and duly beat his compatriot to pole.

What do you think - tell us at Marco's FanZone

Race Five: Indianapolis 500.
Marco Andretti drove to a convincing third-place finish at the 92nd running of the Indianapolis 500. The finish propelled Andretti into fifth-place in the IndyCar Series championship standings, only nine points out of fourth place.

The Indiana Jones/Blockbuster car came to life in the opening stages of the race. Following Andretti’s initial pit stop, he began to move up through the field. After starting eighth, Andretti moved into third place on lap 100, the midway point of the race. On lap 122, Andretti drove around Scott Dixon and into the lead. He would stay there until a restart on lap 138 when Dixon regained the lead. Andretti would be shuffled back to fourth place during a pit stop on lap 156 when the team decided to make a rear wing adjustment. He would later pass Helio Castroneves on lap 189 to finish third.

We launched our Indiana Jones page for the race - thanks to (Paramount Pictures for helping get this all together). All the news. All the photos. One page. Click here

Have your say at the Marco FanZone - Updated by fans!

Blockbuster & Lucasfilm Team Up With Andretti Green Racing to Bring Indiana Jones to Indianapolis 500

Marco Andretti gave the green flag To '#26 Team Indiana Jones Presented By Blockbuster' Car for this year's Indy 500. INDIANA JONES™ is embarking on a daring new adventure, thanks to an alliance between Andretti Green Racing, Blockbuster Inc. and Lucasfilm Ltd. READ MORE

MARCO'S FANZONE COMMUNITY NOW OPEN!!!
"We're up and running, and with special thanks to the Marco mail list members we have a busy vibrant web community, unique in the IRL. Join in, swap stories and get to know Indycar's most dedicated fans!

Spread the word to your MySpace, Facebook and Bebo friends. Click here

2008: ON A MISSION
"The first approach is you forget about last year. Everything that happened, a lot of it was out of my hands -- some of it being my mistake, but it was bad luck. That's one aspect of the game that you can't control, so you have to forget about that part of it and just go in knowing that it's going to be a challenge. It's not going to be easy. When you prevail through your tough days, that's what's going to win you the championship, not the easy days. Go in with the mentality of trying to maximize the car's performance and enjoy yourself, because as drivers that's when you do your best work.

"I can tell you Marco Andretti is on a mission this year. I'm going for a championship. That's what we're racing for. I think it's realistic, I really do. Not with the mentality of 'I've got to win every race,' but that would be the approach. I think it's possible. And for me, there's one thing left to do at Indy, so I have very high expectations for this year. I'm ready to go. I've been ready to go since Chicago last year to try and redeem myself and prove some things to some people."

MARCO HONORED
The National Italian American Hall of Fame honored Marco as its 2007 Athlete of the Year (for his outstanding rookie year achievements) on Saturday 3rd November. "This is really pretty special, as an athlete and a person of Italian heritage," Marco Andretti said. He is the great grandson of Italian immigrants, the late Alvice 'Gigi' and Rhina Andretti, with all four of his grandparents Italian-born.

For as long as he can remember he's had the 'Italian feeling.' "With my grandfather (Mario), how could you help it?" Marco said. "I can tell you I was going crazy when Ferrari won (the F1 championship). It was just for that reason. You can ask a couple of buddies who were watching the race (on TV) with me. I was jumping up and down. I had goose bumps because of that feeling."

ANDRETTI OFFICIAL ONLINE STORE
We thought you might like to see the great deals on Marco apparel, race gear and diecast models at the Andretti store.

Click here to see gift ideas and one-of-a-kind race collectables, like the 2007 autographed helmet that you see here.

New 2008 Andretti Racing hats and polo shirts are just some of the goods you can pick up.

RACE FIVE
Race 5 of 16
Sunday May 25th 2008

Indianapolis Motor Speedway
Qualifying: Sat, May 10
Race: Sun, May 25
Full Schedule

MAR 4th: SEBRING
Marco Andretti to carry on family name at Sebring

A number of drivers will be making their American Le Mans Series debut next week in the Twelve Hours of Sebring. But one name sticks out from the rest. His grandfather is a Sebring legend -- winning three times. His father, uncle and cousin have also made their mark on the famous Florida airfield circuit. Now, third-generation racer Marco Andretti makes his sports car debut, carrying on his family's legacy at Sebring. FULL STORY.

FEB 30th: HOMESTEAD
Unified IndyCar makes public debut

"It's awesome," Marco Andretti said. "For the drivers and for everybody they have to be happy it worked out. Now as a driver it's the best of the best, everybody under one roof. It's great for sponsors and for publicity. I'm real happy.

"You want to know as a driver when you beat these guys you have beat the best of the best. We're welcoming every one of them"
READ ARTICLE

Detroit, Mich.: During Auto Racing Day, at the 2008 North American International Auto Show, IndyCar Series Driver Marco Andretti signs a tire brought in by a fan.



MARCO PODCAST
Interview "Just one of those years" Bridgestone Motorsport's latest podcast features exclusive interviews with Tony Kanaan and Marco Andretti about their 2007 season.

Click here to download and MP3 of the show, or go to the Bridgestone Motorsport website to subscribe to the podcast. Marco said "In any profession, to overcome adversity is the toughest part. We learn so much about staying focused and staying with it the whole year if a little bit of luck swings my way we should be right up there again."