Marco’s race ends on turn one.

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“Today was a disappointing start to the season for the Venom Energy car. I took the green and had a good run going on the inside of (Ryan) Briscoe and then Helio (Castroneves) misjudged his breaking point and ran up into the back of me. It was all a chain of events from there. I think having the cars start so close together is great for the fans but it was no good for me today.”

- Marco Andretti

Marco’s promising start to 2011 ended within seconds of the green flag waving on the Streets of St. Petersburg.

The notoriously difficult first corner at the St. Pete track created mayhem once more as cars ran into the back of each other on the very first turn.

Marco came off worst, as his car took to the air and then turned over. Five other cars were involved in the wreck—all of them from the sport’s top three teams.

Penske drivers Helio Castroneves and Ryan Briscoe were involved, as were Scott Dixon and Andretti Autosport teammate Mike Conway. Andretti, hit from behind, drove collided with Dixon in front, sending the #26 Venom Energy car for a wild ride, flipping and landing upside down. He escaped without injury.

The race was won by former Andretti driver Dario Franchitti, with another former teammate Tony Kanaan finishing third in his debut race for KV/Lotus.