Sharp pays the penalty.

Kelley Racing endured a tough build up to last weekend's Firestone Indy 200 in Nashville as they watched Al Unser Jr's personal problems brought directly into the public eye. The race itself was no less emotional.

When the last caution waved on lap 194 of the 200 lap Firestone Indy 200 at Nashville Superspeedway, Scott Sharp had his #8 Delphi Dallara-Chevrolet in second place with a solid shot at victory number two of the 2002 season. He had led laps 174-189 until eventual winner Alex Barron got under Sharp on the lap 190 restart.

When the green waved on lap 198 setting up a three-lap dash to the checkered, Sharp made a run at leader Barron while fending of strong challenges from both Gil de Ferran and Sam Hornish, Jr. de Ferran was able to make the pass on lap 199 but Sharp held off Hornish, Jr. for third place.

Immediately following the finish, Sharp and team owner Tom Kelley were called to the IRL Administration trailer to receive the news he was being penalized one lap by IRL officials for on-track blocking following the last yellow. The action moved Sharp from third to eighth, the first car one lap down. Sharp now sits eighth in IRL season point standing with 208 points, 139 points behind series leader de Ferran.

A solid tenth place finish marked Renna's debut in the #7 Corteco/Bryant entry. Renna led the race for 35 laps from lap 27 to 61. Following his second stop of the night under yellow, Renna found himself spinning at the exit of pit road. The car would not re-fire immediately resulting in his going down three laps to the leaders in 19th place. With great race strategy, fast pit stops and determination, Renna worked his way to tenth, a solid performance for his first-ever IRL race.

"I am happy with results, the car felt good the whole race, said Renna. "We had a mishap on our way out of the pits following the second pit stop exiting on pit road and spun the car. We got back out there and drove strong the rest of the race.

"My crew gave me great stops and the car was awesome the entire race. I just can't say enough about how awesome these Corteco/Bryant guys are and how much help and support they have given me this weekend.

" It is hard to describe my feelings when I was leading the race. I hope Al Jr. was watching and saw we took good care of his baby. I want to again express our support for Al Jr. and can hardly wait until he is back in the car.

"I am really looking forward to the Michigan race. I had 200 laps of learning tonight and feel I will be that much more comfortable when we head north for the next race."