BACK FOR MORE

Michael Andretti never intended to drive another IndyCar when he retired in 2003. That changed when his teenage son, Marco, joined the circuit last year. Then Michael proved to himself and the world that he still could be competitive at the Indianapolis 500.

After finishing third last year, right behind his precocious son, not surprisingly, he’s back for another shot.

Whether it’s Michael or Little Al, Mario or Arie Luyendyk, the familiar names never seem to disappear from Indy. They just go on sabbaticals.

“I think everybody has their own personal reason,” the 44-year-old Andretti said. “For me, it was the opportunity to run with Marco. We almost won it last year with cars that weren’t that competitive, so I thought I’d come back with better cars and try to win it.”

There are several common reasons for coming back.

Andretti, who will start 11th today, wants to win the only major title missing from his resume. For Al Unser Jr., a two-time winner, racing at Indy is in his blood.

With a family tradition that spans nearly a half-century and includes nine Indy wins and 73 starts, the 45-year-old Unser has little to prove. He’s won points titles and poles, races around the world and achieved the most prestigious award of all -- being known merely by his nickname.

When Little Al announced his retirement in June 2004, he said he had lost the passion to drive. But missing Indy and the possibility of someday soon racing against his own son, Al Unser III, rekindled that desire.

So today, he’ll make his 19th career start -- from the No. 25 spot.

“When I wasn’t here in 2005, I missed it,” Junior said. “It felt like it did in the late ‘90s [during the early years of the IRL-CART split], and I’m still young enough and feel good enough to win here.”

Those considering getting back in the cockpit must look deeper than emotional tugs. Any driver must consider the risks. Among the dangers are injury, failure and tarnishing a once-glorious reputation.

If it seems more drivers are willing to take that gamble today, it might be because they’re healthy enough to keep driving.

Thanks to the advent of safer cars and energy-absorbing SAFER barriers, big hits and career-ending injuries have been reduced dramatically. Medical advancements also have allowed drivers to recuperate more quickly and more fully.

Plus, drivers in their 40s are proving they’re still competitive.

“I wanted to retire when I knew I could still win a race,” Andretti said. “Had I won last year’s race, I probably wouldn’t be back now.”

If a driver has concerns, former Indy winner A.J. Foyt would advise them to stay off the track because the risks outweigh the benefits.

“I think if you step out, you need to stay out,” Foyt said. “If you haven’t raced in two years or so, you really don’t know what the other drivers are going to do out there.”

Kenny Brack fit just inside Foyt’s time limit.

The 1999 Indy winner, while driving for Foyt, made a brief comeback after surviving a horrifying crash at Texas Motor Speedway in October 2003 that left him hospitalized for three months. In May 2005, he climbed back in the car and qualified on the second weekend at Indy with a speed that was faster than pole-sitter Tony Kanaan, and went on to finish 26th in the race.

That was enough for him.

“I felt then, ‘OK, I can do whatever I want to do now’ because I had proven I could still drive at that level,” said Brack, who now plays in a rock band. “I think that’s the purpose of a comeback.”

Through the years, comeback attempts on Indianapolis’ 2.5-mile oval have produced mixed results.

Michael Andretti came back strong in last year’s race after a two-year hiatus.

His father, Mario, toyed with the idea four years ago at the age of 63. His return didn’t go as well. After running over some debris during an April test, Mario’s car went airborne, flipping end over end twice before landing on its wheels. He was lucky, sustaining only a bump on the chin and a bruised heel, enough to scare away Mario for good.

Arie Luyendyk had a similar, albeit less spectacular, plight in 2003. Four years after retiring, Luyendyk, a two-time Indy winner, crashed in practice and hurt his back. He was so groggy a week later that he walked away.

Rick Mears, another four-time winner, and Foyt took a different approach.

While still active in the IndyCar series -- Foyt as a team owner, Mears as a driving coach with Team Penske -- both insist they never seriously considered racing after making the decision to hang up their helmets.

Mears said he was no longer willing to devote the time to staying on top. Foyt, now 72 and in his 50th year at the speedway, wanted to avoid any more beatings to his already battered body.

“When I said I was stepping out of a car, I said I would never step in one again,” Foyt said. “It’s not like I didn’t want to. But I’d been hurt enough and crippled enough to know not to.”

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Facts and figures

Today’s 91st Indianapolis 500-mile race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway:

* Distance: 500 miles; 200 laps around the asphalt-on-brick Indianapolis Motor Speedway track, a 2 1/2 -mile rectangular oval.

* Sanctioning body: Indy Racing League; also open to Champ Car, USAC, NASCAR, SCCA, Formula One and other drivers through international FIA listing.

* Race cars: Open-cockpit, open-wheel and single-seat, with 3.5-liter, 670-horsepower normally aspirated Honda HI7R Indy V-8 engines.

* Pace car: Chevrolet Corvette, driven by actor and Vision Racing co-owner Patrick Dempsey.

* Start: 10 a.m. PDT from a flying start, following warmup, parade and pace laps.

* Finish: Standings are unofficial until posted by the IRL.

* Number of starters: 33 cars, three abreast in each of 11 rows.

* Pole position: Helio Castroneves, who averaged 225.817 mph in four-lap qualifications. Will start first, the inside of the front row.

* Slowest qualifier: Marty Roth, who averaged 218.922 mph. Will start 30th, the outside of the 10th row.

* Fastest rookie: Phil Giebler, 219.637 mph. Will start 33rd, the outside of the 11th row.

* 2006 winner: Sam Hornish Jr., who averaged 157.085 mph for his first win at Indianapolis.

* Former winners in race (6): Al Unser Jr. (1992, 1994), Buddy Lazier (1996), Helio Castroneves (2001, 2002), Buddy Rice (2004), Dan Wheldon (2005), Sam Hornish Jr. (2006).

* Rookies in race (2): Phil Giebler, Milka Duno.

* Youngest in race: Marco Andretti, 20 (Born March 13, 1987).

* Oldest in race: Marty Roth, 48 (Born Dec. 15, 1958).

* Most previous races: Al Unser Jr. (18).

* Foreign born (13): Helio Castroneves, Tony Kanaan, Vitor Meira and Roberto Moreno, Brazil; Dan Wheldon and Darren Manning, England; Dario Franchitti, Scotland; Scott Dixon, New Zealand; Ryan Briscoe, Australia; Tomas Scheckter, South Africa; Kosuke Matsuura, Japan; Milka Duno, Venezuela; Marty Roth, Canada.

* Race record: 185.981 mph, Arie Luyendyk, 1990.

* Closest finishes: 0.043 seconds, Al Unser Jr. over Scott Goodyear, 1992; 0.0635 seconds, Sam Hornish Jr. over Marco Andretti, 2006.

* Purse: Depends on attendance and accessory awards; 2006 payoff was a record $10.5 million, of which winner Sam Hornish Jr. received $1.74 million (not a record) for Penske Racing.

* Crowd: Estimated at about 400,000. Speedway never discloses attendance but admits to more than 250,000 reserved seats in permanent stands and room for 100,000 or more in the infield.

* Television: Televised live and in high definition by Channel 7, with host Brent Musburger, lead announcer Marty Reid, analysts Rusty Wallace and Scott Goodyear, and pit reporters Jack Arute, Jamie Little, Brienne Pedigo and Vince Welch.

Associated Press