IndyCar star pleads not guilty to tax evasion charges

The world of IndyCar has been rocked by the fall from grace of Helio Castroneves, who faces serious jail time after being indicted on six charges of tax evasion and conspiracy for purportedly failing to report more than $5m in income to those meanies at the IRS. Each count carries a maximum five-year prison sentence.

Castroneves, who found nationwide fame in the States after winning the 2007 series of Dancing with the Stars, pleaded not guilty to the charges and is currently out on bail after fronting up a $10m bond. The terms of Castroneves’ bail allow him to race in the States but not abroad, meaning he will almost certainly miss a race later this month in Australia.

Enjoy two thrilling finishes from the weekend’s Stateside racing

Great action from Nascar this weekend, when Jimmie Johnson held off Tony Stewart to win the Chevy Rock & Roll 400 by less than a second. Johnson’s win secured him third seeding in the Chase for the Sprint Cup, behind leader Kyle Busch and Carl Edwards.

Sunday’s IndyCar event saw an even closer finish, and a new champion for 2008. Watch it after the jump…

Indy 500 plagued by Democrats, bad weather and loads of crashes

We got a bad feeling – the sort of feeling Mr T might have before not gettin’ on a plane - about this Sunday’s Indy 500, at least based on the series of unfortunate events that have marked the endless build-up to this Sunday’s big race. It’s enough to make us think that ex-First Lady Hillary Clinton has cursed the event - the Democrat loser-in-waiting turned up at the Indianapolis Speedway a couple of weeks ago, whilst campaigning for the Indiana primary.