Tony Kanaan gets compliments every race weekend on his dancing ability. Fans tell him they watched Dancing With the Stars and hit the redial button on their phones to keep voting for him.

Kanaan smiles sheepishly, knowing folks are confusing him for fellow IndyCar Series driver Helio Castroneves.

“Sometimes I just say thank you,” said Kanaan, one of the 28 drivers expected to compete in Saturday night’s Bombardier Learjet 550 at Texas Motor Speedway. “Other times, I remind them that it’s the other Brazilian driver that dances.”

It’s a clear indication to Kanaan that Castroneves’ fan base has grown since the 33-year-old driver with a big smile, and bigger personality, won the hit TV competition last year.

In other words, Danica Patrick isn’t the only popular driver in the IndyCar Series.

Ryan Briscoe, Castroneves’ teammate, has noticed an increase in Team Penske paraphernalia. He was signing autographs hours before he won his first IndyCar Series race last Sunday in Milwaukee, and several fans told him they were attending their first race.

“I asked what made them come out, and they said they watched Helio on TV and wanted to see what his day job was like,” Briscoe said. “What fans find out is, that personality and fun guy they saw on TV is the way he is all the time. That’s not an act.”

Castroneves is more than a pretty face. He has won two Indianapolis 500s and 10 other career races, including in 2004 and 2006 at TMS. There’s only one thing missing from Castroneves’ mantel, which includes the mirror ball trophy given to the Dancing With the Stars winner.

“I want to win a championship, and I know we’ve got the team to do it,” Castroneves said. “Things just have to come together, and we’ve got to be consistent.”

He has yet to win a race this season, but Castroneves has finished fifth or better in all six races.

Castroneves, second to Scott Dixon in the standings, has come close to winning the title. He led then-teammate Sam Hornish Jr. by one point before the 2006 finale at Chicago. Castroneves was penalized for speeding in pit lane early in the race and ended up fighting lapped traffic to finish fourth. That was one spot behind Hornish, who tied Dan Wheldon for the points lead.

Hornish, now in NASCAR’s Sprint Cup Series, won the title in a tiebreaker because he had more wins, and Castroneves finished two points behind. It was the latest near miss for Castroneves, who was second in 2002 and third in 2003.

Castroneves said he doesn’t think about that now, focusing only on the rest of this season. He looks and feels good – thanks, he says, to grueling hours of dancing to prepare for the show – and is ready to break through for his first 2008 victory. It could come Saturday night.

“I like this track and am comfortable here,” Castroneves said. “I want to race well and have fun.

“I always like to have fun.”

Source: The Dallas Morning News - Richard Durret
10:42 AM CDT on Friday, June 6, 2008