Helio Castroneves came back to Indianapolis carrying all the familiar titles of two-time winner, former pole-sitter and fan favorite.
He also returned to his career-defining race with a new identity: Roger Penske's other guy.
Castroneves welcomes the change.
PHOTO: AFP
"I have to say I am a little more relaxed and that's good," he said. "I can focus a little more on my job and a little less on all those other things."
At least that's the way it was until he won this year's pole.
On any other team, all those media requests, sponsor appearances and autograph sessions would fall primarily to Castroneves, one of five drivers with consecutive Indianapolis 500 wins.
For most of this month, though, Castroneves has worked in the shadow of teammate Sam Hornish Jr, the defending Indy champion.
Clearly, Castroneves possesses star qualities. He's flamboyant, charming, hangs out with high-profile neighbors in Miami, climbs walls when he wins, and, of course, drives for the IndyCar series' most prestigious team.
He's played tennis matches against Anna Kournikova and Martina Hingis.
He boxes, swims, runs and speaks three languages -- Spanish, English and Portuguese -- fluently.
But on Team Penske, the top rewards go to the biggest winner -- and over the past year, that's been Hornish.
Hornish took the pole at Indy last year, then won the race with a remarkable pass of Marco Andretti meters from the finish line.
The victory margin, 0.0635, was the second-smallest in the 90-year history of the race, which is considered to be one of the most memorable ever.
It wasn't just Indy that cemented Hornish's image.
By season's end, he had reached Victory Lane four times and finished second five more times, enough to become the series' first driver with three career points titles.
So when Hornish returned to the 4km oval, all eyes were on the 28-year-old Ohio native.
"I expected coming in that there was going to be a lot more things that I was going to have to do and a lot more questions to be asked," Hornish said.
Their appointments reflect the disparity.
Even after Castroneves' pole-winning run on May 12, a spokesman for Team Penske said Hornish had booked all but 15 minutes for the rest of the month.
Castroneves' schedule, in contrast, was still pretty much open.
The lack of requests allowed Castroneves to concentrate more on racing, and the 32-year-old Brazilian has thrived. He's consistently been among the fastest drivers all month and now holds the highest-profile spot heading into Sunday's race thanks to Penske's maneuvering in qualifications.
"Well, I guess we're going to be in the spotlight again," Castroneves said. "And that's OK, I kind of like it."
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