FanHouse TeamPenske

IndyCar Series championship contender Ryan Briscoe will join FanHouse for a live chat on Thursday at 11:30 AM ET.

Briscoe, 28, who drives the No. 6 car for Team Penske, is one of three drivers who will decide the IndyCar championship Saturday night in the series finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Only eight points separate third place Briscoe from leader Scott Dixon. Dario Franchitti is five points behind Dixon in the series' second closest three-man battle for the season title.

Join Briscoe as he takes your questions and discusses the biggest opportunity of his career in one of racing's most exciting championship scenarios.

INDIANAPOLIS - The Indianapolis Motor Speedway has kicked off its 100th birthday celebration with the closest Indy 500 starting field in history, the largest crowd in recent memory and a vibe reminiscent of the race's heyday.

Even NASCAR's "King" Richard Petty will be trackside today as Jim Nabors sings "Back Home Again in Indiana" -- to wrap up a traditional pre-race show unlike anything in sports.

Sure, the Penske and Ganassi and Andretti Green teams are odds-on favorites to win today's Indianapolis 500. But with the reunification of the two open-wheel series last year, the grid boasts a legitimate 13-14 contenders and has finally put to rest the notion that Indy has lost its competitive edge.

Effusive and emotional by nature, Helio Castroneves could offer up only a simple and humble greeting when he arrived at his team's trackside garage area in Long Beach, Calif., shortly after sunrise Saturday morning.

"Hey guys, I'm home," Castroneves, 33, told the Team Penske crew, who loudly applauded his arrival -- hugs and handshakes all around.