Matos Leads Second-Day Indy Qualifiers

Raphael Matos led second-day qualifiers Sunday at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, as the Luczo Dragon Racing driver posted a four-lap average of 223.429 mph to line up 12th in the 33-car field. Matos, the 2008 Indy Lights champion, will be the highest-starting rookie in the lineup and so far is the only one of six rookies to successfully qualify for the 2009 Indianapolis 500.

The rush to qualify in the final 10 minutes became intense, as Scott Sharp, Alex Tagliani and Ryan Hunter-Reay all made attempts to unseat “bubble” driver E.J. Viso from the 22nd spot, the final qualifying position available today. Neither Hunter-Reay nor Tagliani had the required speed, but Sharp -- in his third and final qualifying attempt -- recorded his best speed of the month when it really mattered and “bumped” his way into the field with a speed of 222.162 mph.