INDIANAPOLIS — Helio Castroneves understands better than most how hard it is to win the Indianapolis 500.

The charismatic Brazilian won as a rookie in 2001 and then backed it up with a victory the next year, becoming only the fifth driver in the history of Indianapolis Motor Speedway to win two in a row.

Since then, six years have passed with no fence-climbing celebrations at Indy for "Spiderman."

"The first year was pretty tough," Castroneves said. "The second year was even tougher. The third year, I had like a bullet. This car was incredible, supersonic. I finished second. So, I learned that you can't let opportunities go by. You've got to go for it. That's what we're going to do this Sunday."

A win this year would be particularly significant for Castroneves. On Friday, federal prosecutors dropped the remaining tax evasion conspiracy charge against him and his sister, clearing Castroneves of all the charges that once threatened to derail his career.

In just his third race since returning to the series, Castroneves will start from the pole today, with Penske Racing teammate Ryan Briscoe next to him in the middle of the front row. That 1-2 punch gives team owner Roger Penske a good shot at his 15th Indy win.

"We've got a good chance this year with two cars on the front row," said Penske, who last visited Victory Lane with Sam Hornish Jr. in 2006. "But, to win here, everything has to work perfectly, everything."

Penske had a 1-2 finish in 2003, with Gil de Ferran outdueling Castroneves. This time, Castroneves would love to give the team another sweep, with himself out front.

Although Castroneves is the oddsmakers' favorite, Briscoe is the one who could give Penske a new face on the Borg Warner Trophy.

"Winning this race comes from the preparations and the leadup to it, what you've done in the three weeks here," the Australian driver said. "I honestly feel as though we couldn't have done a better job this month. We've really got a good feeling with the car setup and what we need to do going into the race."

Good enough to go 1-2-3?

Penske has a third entry for the first time since 1994, when Al Unser Jr. gave him a win. Will Power, hired to fill in for Castroneves until his legal problems were resolved, was rewarded with a drive at Indy after Castroneves returned to the cockpit.

The Aussie, starting from the outside of the third row, might be the most motivated of the Penske drivers as the team has not guaranteed him any more races.

"I know I have a great car and a great team," Power said. "I'm going to do the best job I can and we'll see what happens. I don't believe this will be my last race for Penske."

Briscoe figures with all that firepower the team has a very good chance for success.

"Hopefully, just doing everything right and minimizing the mistakes is what it will take to win the race," Briscoe said.

Nothing is ever a sure thing at Indy, though.

Tony Kanaan is a good example. He has raced at Indy seven times, led the race each year — a record — and has yet to finish better than second (2004).

"I feel very lucky," Castroneves said. "My life is starting all over again. I'm having fun doing what I love doing best, and I'm going to try to win Indy again."

INDY 500 DRIVERS

By Steve Herman
Associated Press

Profiles of the 33 drivers in today's Indianapolis 500, in starting order (car number in parentheses), age, hometown, chassis, race team, four-lap qualification average and biographical information (w-former winner; r-rookie; all chassis Dallara, all engines Honda):

ROW 1

1. (3) w-Helio Castroneves, 34, Sao Paulo, Brazil; Team Penske; 224.864 mph. Two-time Indy 500 winner missed season-opener during his tax evasion trial, in which he was acquitted all charges. Seventh at Long Beach and runner-up at Kansas, he's 10th in season points. Won Indy in 2001 and 2002.

2. (6) Ryan Briscoe, 27, Sydney, Australia; Team Penske, 224.083 mph. Won season-opener at St. Petersburg, his third career win, and is second in series points after three races, one point behind Tony Kanaan. Was a test driver in Formula One in 2004. Best finish at Indy was fifth in 2007.

3. (10) Dario Franchitti, 36, Edinburgh, Scotland; Ganassi Racing; 224.010 mph. The 2007 Indy 500 and IndyCar champion, returns after unsuccessful NASCAR attempt. Third behind Tony Kanaan and Ryan Briscoe in series points. Won at Long Beach but 18th after crashing at Kansas.

ROW 2

4. (02) Graham Rahal, 20, New Albany, Ohio; Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing; 223.954 mph. Son of Rahal Letterman Racing co-owner and 1986 Indy winner Bobby Rahal. Won his IRL debut at St. Petersburg, Fla., last year, becoming the youngest winner in major open-wheel racing.

5. (9) w-Scott Dixon, 28, Auckland, New Zealand; Ganassi Racing; 223.867 mph. Defending Indy 500 and IndyCar Series champion. Making 100th career start in IRL. Coming off win at Kansas, his 17th career victory, is fourth in season points. CART rookie of the year in 2001.

6. (11) Tony Kanaan, 34, Sao Paulo, Brazil; Andretti Green Racing; 223.612 mph. The 2004 IndyCar champion leads the series this season by one point over Ryan Briscoe. Has 13 career wins. Best finish in seven starts at Indy was runner-up to Buddy Rice in rain-shortened 2004 race.

ROW 3

7. (5) Mario Moraes, 20, Sao Paulo, Brazil; KV Racing Technology; 223.331 mph. Finished second in South American F3 series in 2006 and 14th in the British F3 International Series in 2007. Joined IRL in 2008, and best finish in 19 IndyCar starts seventh last year at Watkins Glen.

8. (26) Marco Andretti, 22, Nazareth, Pa.; Andretti Green Racing; 223.114 mph. Indy runner-up and rookie of the year in 2006, when he was passed by Sam Hornish Jr. just before the checkered flag. Crashed and finished 24th at Indy in 2007 and third last year. Seventh in series points this season.

9. (12) Will Power, 28, Toowoomba, Australia; Penske Racing; 223.028 mph. Champ Car rookie of the year in 2006. Was 13th at Indianapolis and 12th in IndyCar series as a rookie last year. Hired by Penske this season after Helio Castroneves was charged with tax evasion.

ROW 4

10. (7) Danica Patrick, 27, Roscoe, Ill.; Andretti Green Racing; 222.882 mph. First woman to win major open-wheel race with victory in Japan last year. Sixth in points this season after finishing fourth at Long Beach and fifth at Kansas. Indy and IRL rookie of the year in 2005.

11. (99) Alex Lloyd, 24, Manchester, England; Ganassi Racing/Sam Schmidt Motorsports; 222.622 mph. Won Indy Lights series championship in 2007. Won the developmental series' Liberty Challenge in 2006 and Freedom 100 in 2007; driver to win on both the oval and road courses at Indy.

12. (2) r-Raphael Matos, 27, Belo Horizonte, Brazil, Luczo Dragon Racing; 223.429 mph. In his first IndyCar season after winning series championships in the Formula Dodge, Star Mazda Pro, Champ Car Atlantic and Indy Lights developmental programs.

ROW 5

13. (15) Paul Tracy, 40, Scarborough, Canada, KV Racing Technology; 223.111 mph. Making his first start at Indy since 2002, when he finished second to Helio Castroneves and lost an appeal that he had passed Castroneves for the win before the caution flag came out on the last lap.

14. (14) Vitor Meira, 32, Brasilia, Brazil; A.J. Foyt Enterprises; 223.054 mph. Holds IndyCar record with 96 career starts without a win. Finished second in eight races, including twice at Indianapolis in 2005 and 2008. Fifteenth in series points this season, with best finish ninth in opener at St. Petersburg.

15. (18) Justin Wilson, 30, Sheffield, England; Dale Coyne Racing; 222.903 mph. Won 2001 F3000 championship. Had four Champ Car wins and was series runner-up in 2006 and 2007. Joined IndyCar series last year, with his only win in 19 starts at Belle Isle.

ROW 6

16. (27) Hideki Mutoh, 26, Tokyo, Japan; Andretti Green Racing; 222.805 mph. Runner-up in developmental Indy Lights in 2007, joined Andretti Green when 2007 Indy and IRL champion Dario Franchitti left for NASCAR. Best finish in 21 career starts was second at Iowa in 2008.

17. (20) Ed Carpenter, 28, Indianapolis; Vision Racing; 222.780 mph. Drives for team co-owned by his stepfather, Speedway boss Tony George. Started in midget and sprint cars, finished third in IRL's developmental Indy Lights in 2002 and 2003, including win at Indianapolis in 2003.

18. (4) w-Dan Wheldon, 30, Emberton, England; Panther Racing; 222.777 mph. The Indy 500 winner and IndyCar champion in 2005 has gone 12 races without a win and is 11th in points after three races this season. Won two races in each of the past three years.

ROW 7

19. (41) A.J. Foyt IV, 24, Hockley, Texas; A.J. Foyt Enterprises; 222.586 mph. Grandson of four-time Indy winner A.J. Foyt. Making his first start of the season with his grandfather's team after two years with Vision Racing. Was youngest starter in Indy 500 history in 2003, when he was 18th as a rookie.

20. (16) Scott Sharp, 41, Norwalk, Conn., Panther Racing; 222.162 mph. Former Indy pole-starter, making a record 147th IndyCar Series start but first since 2007. Best finish in 13 starts at Indianapolis also was sixth in 2007. He started from the pole in 2001 but crashed on the first lap.

21. (67) Sarah Fisher, 28, Commercial Point, Ohio; Sarah Fisher Racing; 222.082 mph. Became third woman to race at Indianapolis in 2000. Drove in NASCAR West series in 2005 and returned to IRL in 2006. Best finish in 70 career starts was second at Homestead in 2001.

ROW 8

22. (44) Davey Hamilton, 46, Nampa, Idaho; Dreyer & Reinbold Racing; 221.956 mph. Making only third start, all at Indianapolis, since he was seriously injured in a crash at Texas in 2001 and underwent 21 operations on feet and legs.

23. (06) r-Robert Doornbos, 27, Rotterdam, Netherlands, Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing; 221.692 mph. In his first IndyCar season, is 13th in series points. Drove in 11 races in Formula One in 2005 and 2006, and was Champ Car rookie of the year in 2007.

24. (8) Townsend Bell, 34, San Francisco; KV Racing Technology; 221.195 mph. Indy Lights rookie of the year in 2000 and series champion in 2001. Drove in former CART series in 2002 and Formula 3000 in 2003 before joining IndyCar in 2004. Best finish was fifth at Nashville in 2004.

ROW 9

25. (17) Oriol Servia, 34, Pals, Spain; Rahal Letterman Racing; 220.984 mph. Champ Car series runner-up in 2005, filling in for injured Bruno Junqueira. Finished sixth in Champ Car in 2007 and joined IRL with KV Racing last year. Ninth in series points in 2008, with best finish fourth at Belle Isle.

26. (19) Tomas Scheckter, 28, Cape Town, South Africa; Dale Coyne Racing; 221.496 mph. Son of 1979 F1 champion Jody Scheckter. Led 85 laps and was co-rookie of the year at Indianapolis in 2002 and finished fourth in 2003.

27. (24) r-Mike Conway, 25, Bromley, England, Dreyer & Reinbold Racing; 221.417 mph. British Formula 3 Renault champion in 2004 and British Formula 3 International champion in 2006. Made his IndyCar debut this year with 22nd place at St. Petersburg.

ROW 10

28. (43) John Andretti, 46, Indianapolis; Richard Petty Motorsports; 221.316 mph. Nephew of Mario Andretti and cousin of Michael and Marco Andretti. Was 30th at Indianapolis in 2007 in his first start since 1994 and 16th last year.

29. (13) E.J. Viso, 24, Caracas, Venezuela; HVM Racing; 221.164 mph. A test driver in Formula One in 2006, he also competed in the European GP 2 Series, winning twice. No wins in 18 IndyCar starts the past two season, with best finish fourth last year at St. Petersburg.

30. (23) Milka Duno, 37, Caracas, Venezuela; Dreyer & Reinbold Racing; 221.106 mph. Fifth woman to qualify at Indy, was 31st in her rookie race in 2007 and 19th last year. Best finish in 19 IndyCar starts 11th at Texas in 2007. Finished 16th at Kansas in her only start this season.

ROW 11

31. (00) r-Nelson Philippe, 22, Valence, France, HVM Racing; 220.754 mph. Making his first IndyCar start. Began racing in Champ Car in 2004, when at 17 he was the youngest ever to start in that series. Only victory was at Surfers Paradise in 2006.

32. (21) Ryan Hunter-Reay, 28, Boca Raton, Fla.; Vision Racing; 220.597 mph. IndyCar series rookie of the year in 2007 and Indy 500 rookie of the year in 2008 after finishing sixth. Fifth in series points this season.

33. (36) r-Alex Tagliani, 36, Lachenaie, Canada, Conquest Racing; 221.115 mph. Starting last because car qualified by Bruno Junqueira. Drove in CART/Champ Car in 2000-08, with best finishes second three times.