Rahal cars sent to back of grid

The Nos. 8 and 17 Rahal Letterman Racing cars have been moved to the rear of the field for the XM Satellite Radio Indy 300 after their times were disallowed because of failing post-qualifying technical inspection.

Scott Sharp, who had the seventh-quickest speed (212.623 mph; 25.1431 seconds) on the 1.5-mile oval, will start 19th. Simmons, who had the 17th-quickest lap (211.104), will start 20th.

"The penalties imposed on the No. 8 and No. 17 cars by the IndyCar Series were purely of subjective interpretation, and Rahal Letterman Racing does not agree with this ruling," the team said in a statement. "Our cars have been in the same configuration since arriving at Homestead, and have passed IndyCar Series technical inspection at various times throughout the weekend.

"While we don't agree with the ruling, we are confident our cars were legal and therefore eligible within the Indy Car Series rules for competition, and we will now focus our energy on the race at hand and maximizing our results here at Homestead-Miami Speedway." Indy Car PR