• 300 Bombardier Learjet 550k Tickets Priced At $1 Each Courtesy Of Helio Castroneves’ Indy 500 Pole-Winning Effort Sell Briskly
• 4-Pack At $79 Available To Fans Who May Have Missed Out On Special

FORT WORTH, Texas (May 12, 2009) – Apparently IndyCar Series fans had quite an appetite for “Helio’s Blue Plate Special.”

“Helio’s Blue Plate Special,” in which 300 frontstretch tickets for the Bombardier Learjet 550k on June 6 at Texas Motor Speedway were priced at $1, lasted all of 13 minutes Tuesday as fans gobbled up the tremendous bargain that was brought to them courtesy of IndyCar Series star Helio Castroneves. The special, which began at 9 a.m. CT and limited to four tickets per customer, was only available by calling the TMS ticket office or by visiting in person, and all 300 sold out by 9:13 a.m.

“I know of 300 fans specifically that may give Helio a standing ovation when he comes through the stands during pre-race introductions for the Bombardier Learjet 550k,” Texas Motor Speedway President Eddie Gossage said. “I was encouraged to hear that 45 percent of those fans who purchased tickets were new customers. It was a tremendous price point in this economy for potentially new fans – in particular families – to experience our sport and hopefully they will get hooked by the experience.”

“Helio’s Blue Plate Special” was a special promotion that tied the pricing of this limited supply of tickets – 300 in tribute to his car number 3 – to his qualifying performance for the Indianapolis 500. Castroneves responded by winning the pole Saturday and giving fans the best price possible from this promotion. The ticket promotion theme played off his visit Monday to Dallas where he received cooking lessons from world-renown chef Stephan Pyles at his downtown restaurant near the Arts District.

“Wow – 300 tickets in 13 minutes – that’s unbelievable,” Castroneves said. “The folks at Texas Motor Speedway do a great job to promote our race and our Series and always come up with fun ways to involve the fans. I had a great time cooking with Chef Stephan yesterday and was glad I was able to kick-off the ‘Blue Plate Special’ promotion. I want to thank everyone at the track and especially the fans for all of their support. We are all looking forward to racing there in June and paying back the fans with a great show.”

With “Helio’s Blue Plate Special” sold out, Texas Motor Speedway still has an appetizing deal for those fans that may have missed out. Fans can purchase the Bombardier Learjet 550k 4-Pack, which consists of four frontstretch tickets for just $79.

The Bombardier Learjet 550k race week kicks off Thursday, June 4, with practice and qualifying for the WinStar World Casino 400 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series event as well as opening IndyCar practice for the Bombardier Learjet 550k. IndyCar Series qualifying is Friday, June 5, at 5:30 p.m. CT and will be followed by the WinStar World Casino 400 race at 8 p.m. CT. The weekend culminates Saturday, June 6, with the running of the Bombardier Learjet 550k at 8:30 p.m. CT. Tickets are available for each day by calling the TMS ticket office at (817) 215-8500 or by visiting www.texasmotorspeedway.com.