Bourdais Cautions Ahead of Race

The Champ Cars run flat-out all the way around the 1.5-mile superspeedway and the race is likely to see a pack of slipstreaming cars fighting for victory.

Newman/Haas appears to have a distinct advantage, with Bourdais and teammate Oriol Servia first and second fastest in qualifying and both Friday practice sessions, but Bourdais isn't taking anything for granted.

"It's just a bit of a nerve-wracking race really because anything can happen," said the Frenchman. "Obviously, it's really tough on the car, extremely difficult on the engine. Mechanically, anything can happen.

"That would be the most single painful thing we can encounter during this end of the season, not to finish a race. Hopefully we can keep our nose clean and have a reliable car and move on."

Servia was more upbeat about his chances. The Spaniard expects Newman/Haas Racing's dominance to continue, and is determined to take his second consecutive victory in Saturday night's race.

"I think we already showed in practice that we were probably going to be up there," he said. "No surprises. The car was very good even with the wind. We knew that no other team was going to beat us.

"Sebastien doesn't need wins any more. He has a 60-point advantage. The important thing for the team is to secure first and second in the Championship. The best way to do that is for the number two car to win. That's the goal."

Bourdais has donated half of the $10,000 pole award he received tonight to the hurricane relief effort.