Helio's Trial Date Set
By Andrew Cutler
November 12 2008
If Team Penske driver Helio Castroneves was hoping that his tax evasion trail would wait until after the 2009 IndyCar Season, it appears that his hopes were in vain. On Monday a judge set a trail date of March 2, 2009; a month before the season begins in St. Petersburg.
This puts his boss, team owner Roger Penske, in a difficult position. Speaking to reporters yesterday, Penske seemed to hold out some hope that a case continuance until after the season is complete could still be in the offing. If not, however, he may be forced to pull Castroneves from the car. "If its during the season, obviously its very difficult for us to have him as a full-time driver. It would be difficult for us to have him in the car during a period of time when he would have to be preparing himself for court."
Penske stated that he hopes to have a clearer understanding of the situation, and possibly a decision as to who will be driving the #3 car come St. Petersburg, by early December.