Federal prosecutors dropped the remaining tax evasion conspiracy charge against two-time Indianapolis 500 champion Helio Castroneves and his sister on Friday, clearing the Brazilian driver of all the charges that once threatened to derail his career.
Castroneves, 34 and one of the favorites for Sunday’s Indy 500, and his 35-year-old sister Katiucia, were acquitted of other tax evasion charges by a jury April 17. His tax lawyer, Alan Miller of Michigan, also was cleared of all wrongdoing.
The jury failed to agree on the conspiracy charge, resulting in a mistrial on that count. Now prosecutors have decided not to pursue a retrial on that charge, which carries a maximum prison sentence of five years…Â Details
Brazilian pole-sitter Helio Castroneves turned the fastest lap Friday in the final practice session before Sunday’s Indianapolis 500.
Castroneves, a two-time Indy winner who was acquitted last month on tax evasion charges, circled the famed 2 1/2-mile (4km) oval in 40.1929 seconds for a fast lap of 223.920 mph (358.272 k/hr) in warm and sunny conditions.
“If I could win this race it would be my biggest victory,” Castroneves said…Â Details
Monte-Carlo, Monaco. The jewel in the Formula One crown. The only place that gives more to Formula One than Formula One gives to it. But on the eve on the sixth round of this years’ championship, who will be crowned the king of the principality?
If the bookies are anything to go by, Jenson Button will be the man to beat this weekend. After another Button and Brawn GP master class in Barcelona, the likelihood of it being a similarstory in Monte-Carlo seems ominous.
Brawn GP’s superior downforce in the lower-speed corners will inevitably give them the edge at the slowest track on the F1 calendar, and this paired with a driver who is on the very top of his game right now sould lead to another victory to the Brawn GP team.
Of the chasing pack, Red Bull still …Â Details
Formula One’s most glamorous race, the Monaco GP, is feeling the pinch of the global financial crisis.
Formula One’s slim-downed, cost-conscious version arrives at the principality of Monaco, one of the world’s wealthiest states, for the 67th time. But the atmosphere is clearly different this year.
Although there will be movie stars and models frolicking aboard two-story yachts as always, the downturn has touched this tax haven that many F1 drivers call home.
Empty stands stood out in front of the harbor during Thursday’s first practice day and thousands of the 45,000 tickets were still available on Friday for Sunday’s 78-lap race…Â Details