INDIANAPOLIS 500 QUALIFYING: YASUKAWA ONLY LOCAL TO EARN BERTH SATURDAY MOTOR SPORTS: DOMINGUEZ, PAPIS BOTH CRASH, GET THEIR CHANCE TODAY ON BUMP DAY.

Byline: Tim Haddock

Staff Writer

Townsend Bell, driving the No. 99 car for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing, was the fastest qualifier Saturday, when the final 22 starting spots for the Indianapolis 500 were determined.

Roger Yasukawa, in the No. 98 car for Beck Motorsports, posted the 31st fastest qualifying speed, and will start the 92nd running of the Indianapolis 500 on May 25 from inside of Row 11.

"I think things could be better," said Yasukawa, a driver from Los Angeles making his sixth career Indy 500 start. "The car has been the best all week during the qualifying runs, so we're pretty happy with that. We just need to bring the car out now and see if we can pick up more speed."

Mario Dominguez, driving the No. 96 car for Oxnard-based Pacific Coast Motorsports, crashed during the morning practice session and did not make a qualifying run.

Max Papis, in the No. 44 car for Rubicon Race Team, owned in part by actor Jason Priestley and working with Sam Schmidt Motorsports, also crashed in the morning practice session. Dominguez and Papis will have a chance to make the field today on Bump Day, when they have one last attempt to knock the slowest qualifiers out of the race. Marty Roth was the 33rd and final qualifier.

"I'm confident, but I'm certainly not sitting down and relaxing," said Dominguez, who was examined and cleared to drive by Dr. Mike Olinger, senior medical director for the Indy Racing League. "I'm not relaxed, and neither is the team, by any means. We knew coming in it was not going to be easy to make the field, but we all believe we can do it."

Papis was also examined and cleared to drive by Olinger.

"It was definitely a very unfortunate moment for the Rubicon Lifelock team. We are trying to understand and analyze what happened, but the bottom line is we don't have a car to qualify right now," Papis said after crashing his car. "I drove into Turn 3, and right when I was turning in, the car just came around. It was a very, very unusual feeling as I had never had this problem before. It was very, very unexpected. I have a lot of confidence with my guys, they are coming up with a solution, and we'll see what happens."

Jim Freudenberg, the co-owner of the Rubicon Race Team, said the car will be on the track today. Other teams provided spare parts to repair the car.

"This is the good thing that comes from the bad part of racing," Freudenberg said. "Even people you are trying to beat are trying to give you a fair shot. To me, that doesn't happen in many places. It is the positive thing about this sport."

Phil Giebler, a graduate of Oxnard High and last year's Indy 500 Rookie of the Year, crashed during his qualifying run while driving the No. 88 car for American Dream Motorsports. He was taken to Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis with pulmonary contusions and a bruised lung.

There are four drivers who have not qualified for the Indy 500. In addition to Dominguez, Papis and Giebler, A.J. Foyt IV did not make the starting field for the race. Bump Day qualifying begins at 10 a.m. and ends at 4 p.m.

[e-mail]